Hedgehog

Dr Pat Morris was Senior Lecturer in Zoology at Royal Holloway, University of London. He is best known for his studies on hedgehogs over the last 50 years, but also studied water voles, bats and dormice. He was a Council member of the National Trust and (for six years) Chairman of its Nature Conservation Advisory Panel. He was a Vice President of the London Wildlife Trust and is a member of two other county wildlife trusts, the RSPB, various other conservation organisations and the first Honorary Life Member of the Guild of Taxidermists. In September 2000 he was appointed President of the British Hedgehog Preservation Society and is a key scientific advisor to the People¿s Trust for Endangered Species. He has published over 80 scientific papers, mostly about mammals, and also books on bats, dormice, hedgehogs and (with his wife) the natural history of lakes. He is a popular lecturer on various aspects of natural history and for many years contributed to radio programmes for the BBC and helped to make the TV films The Great Hedgehog Mystery and The Incredible Edible Dormouse. In 2015 he was made MBE for `services to the historic and natural environment¿.

The hedgehog is regularly voted Britain¿s favourite mammal, and yet we know surprisingly little about the life of this spiny mammal. Pat Morris provides an all-encompassing new study of the hedgehog and its habitat, shedding new light on conservation efforts crucial to the survival of this charming creature of our countryside.