Road traffic kills almost a third of hedgehogs in some British populations each year, a new study shows, and could be putting smaller populations at risk of collapse and local extinction. A new study involving the University of Cambridge has found that road traffic kills between 15-29% of hedgehogs in local populations each year. The study, funded by The British Hedgehog Preservation Society and People’s Trust for Endangered Species, investigated how road traffic deaths impact local hedgehog populations of different sizes in the short and longer term. To get their results, the researchers studied four hedgehog populations in villages and towns in Nottinghamshire, selected to be representative of wider populations in terms of habitat and road densities. This research shows the importance of bolstering smaller hedgehog populations so that they can better withstand traffic-related deaths.