THE loveable hedgehog is the subject of a National Awareness Week from Monday, April 30, and a county nature group is urging everyone to get involved.

Herefordshire Action for Mammals (HAM) is hoping to find out more about the distribution and numbers of hedgehogs in the county and is relying on the public's help in collecting information.

In particular, people are being invited to send in records of either live or dead animals throughout this summer.

It is not known exactly how healthy hedgehog numbers are, but it is feared that they are in decline due to changes in natural habitat in rural areas and loss of wilder areas, such as railway embankments.

Recent research has indicated that few hedgehogs live out their full lifespan. Almost half of hedgehog deaths are caused by human activities.

These include being run over on roads, poisoned by garden chemicals, killed or injured by garden machinery or in compost heaps and bonfires during winter months.

Anyone interested in taking part in the HAM project, please send records, including exact location, to Herefordshire Action for Mammals, 89 College Road, Hereford HR1 1ED, telephone 01432 357732 or e-mail hereford_mammals@hotmail.com