Hedgehogs Helping You Fall Asleep

If your insomnia demands something with spikes but no real drama, hedgehogs may do the trick. These solitary, nocturnal insectivores bumble through gardens and folklore alike without stirring much excitement. Ideal bedtime material.

Transcript

Welcome to the I Can't Sleep Podcast,

Where I help you learn a little and sleep a lot.

I'm your host,

Benjamin Boster.

I just recently reorganized my topic request list,

Which means that different topics are going to be showcased a little sooner,

Hopefully,

Than thought before,

Because I've categorized everything,

Like animals,

Nature and geography,

Food and drink,

And so on.

So,

Hopefully,

This showcases a broader spectrum and a little more variety in episode topics.

So,

Today's topic that we're going to fall asleep to is an animal topic about hedgehogs.

A hedgehog is a spiny mammal of the subfamily Erinaceae in the Ulipotiflon family Erinaceidae.

There are 17 species of hedgehog in five genera found throughout parts of Europe,

Asia and Africa,

And in New Zealand by introduction.

There are no hedgehogs native to Australia and no living species native to the Americas.

However,

The extinct genus Amphikinus was once present in North America.

Hedgehogs share distant ancestry with shrews,

With Gymnoors possibly being the intermediate link,

And they have changed little over the last 15 million years.

Like many of the first mammals,

They have adapted to a nocturnal way of life.

Their spiny protection resembles that of porcupines,

Which are rodents and echidnas,

A type of monotreme.

The name hedgehog came into use around the year 1450,

Derived from the Middle English heghog from hege,

Hedge,

Because of frequent hedgerows,

And hoga,

Hog,

Hog,

From its pig-like snout.

Other names that are used are urchin and hedge pig.

Hedgehogs are easily recognized by their spines,

Which are hollow hairs made stiff with keratin.

Their spines are not poisonous or barbed,

And,

Unlike the quills of a porcupine,

Do not easily detach from their bodies.

However,

The immature animal's spines normally fall out as they are replaced with adult spines.

This is called quilling.

Spines can also shed when the animal is diseased or under extreme stress.

Hedgehogs are usually brown,

With pale tips to the spines,

Though blonde hedgehogs are found on the Channel Island of Alderney.

Hedgehogs roll into a tight spiny ball when threatened,

Tucking in the furry face,

Feet,

And belly.

The hedgehog's back contains two large muscles that direct the quills.

Some lightweight desert hedgehog species,

With fewer spines,

Are more likely to flee or attack,

Ramming an intruder with the spines,

Rolling up only as a last resort.

They are primarily nocturnal,

With some species also active during the day.

Hedgehogs sleep for a large portion of a day under bushes,

Grasses,

Rocks,

Or more commonly in dens dug underground.

All wild hedgehogs can hibernate,

Though the duration depends on temperature,

Species,

And abundance of food.

Hedgehogs are fairly vocal,

With a variety of grunts,

Snuffles,

And or squeals.

They occasionally perform a ritual called anointing.

When the animal encounters a new scent,

It will lick and bite the source,

Then form a scented froth in its mouth and paste it on its spines with its tongue.

Some experts believe this might serve to camouflage the hedgehog with the local scent,

And might also lead to infection of predators poked by the spines.

Anointing is sometimes also called anting,

After a similar behavior in birds.

Like opossums,

Mice,

And moles,

Hedgehogs have some natural immunity against snake venom through the protein arenasin in their muscles,

Though in such small amounts that a viper bite may still be fatal.

In addition,

Hedgehogs are one of four known mammalian groups with natural protection against another snake venom,

A neurotoxin.

Developing independently,

Pigs,

Honey badgers,

Mongooses,

And hedgehogs all have mutations in the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor that prevent the binding of the snake venom,

A neurotoxin.

The sense of smell has been little studied in the hedgehog,

As the olfactory part of a mammal brain is obscured inside the neopalium.

Tests have suggested that hedgehogs share the same olfactory electrical activity as cats.

Although traditionally classified in the abandoned order Insectivora,

Hedgehogs are omnivorous.

They feed on insects,

Snails,

Frogs,

And toads,

Snakes,

Bird eggs,

Carrion,

Mushrooms,

Grass roots,

Berries,

And melons.

Afghan hedgehogs devour berries in early spring,

After hibernation.

Hedgehogs have been observed eating cat food left outdoors for pets.

This may not be a proper food for hedgehogs in captivity.

When a hedgehog hibernates,

Its normal 30 to 35 degrees Celsius body temperature decreases to 2 to 5 degrees Celsius.

Hedgehog gestation lasts 35 to 58 days,

Depending on species.

The average litter is 3 to 4 newborns for larger species,

And 5 to 6 for smaller ones.

Hedgehogs have a relatively long lifespan for their size.

In captivity,

Lack of predators and controlled diet contribute to a lifespan of 8 to 10 years,

Depending on size.

In the wild,

Larger species live 4 to 7 years,

Some recorded up to 16 years,

And smaller species live 2 to 4 years,

4 to 7 in captivity.

This compares to a mouse at 2 years,

And a large rat at 3 to 5 years.

Newborn hoglets are blind,

With their quills covered by a protective membrane,

Which dries and shrinks over several hours,

And falls off after cleaning,

Allowing the quills to emerge.

The most common pet species of hedgehog are hybrids of the white-bellied hedgehog,

Or four-toed hedgehog,

And the smaller North African hedgehog.

Other species kept as pets are the long-eared hedgehog,

And the Indian long-eared hedgehog.

As of 2019,

It is illegal to own a hedgehog as a pet in the U.

S.

States of Hawaii,

Georgia,

Pennsylvania,

And California,

As well as in New York City,

Washington,

D.

C.

,

And some Canadian municipalities.

Breeding licenses are required.

No such restrictions exist in most European countries,

With the exception of Scandinavia.

In Italy,

It is illegal to keep wild hedgehogs as pets.

In areas where hedgehogs have been introduced,

Such as New Zealand and the islands of Scotland,

The hedgehog has become a pest,

Lacking natural predators.

In New Zealand,

It has decimated native species,

Including insects,

Snails,

Lizards,

And ground-nesting birds,

Particularly shorebirds.

Hedgehogs have appeared widely in popular and folk culture,

Particularly in Europe,

One of their native continents.

Though not native to Oceania,

Hedgehogs have been introduced to New Zealand,

Leading to their appearance in New Zealand's culture.

With many prominent roles in folktales,

Hedgehogs are also common in modern culture and media,

With appearances in books,

Video games,

Television shows,

And films.

As animals native to Europe and Africa,

Hedgehogs hold a place in European folklore.

In most European countries,

Hedgehogs are believed to be a hard-working,

No-nonsense animal.

This partially results from the folk belief that hedgehogs collect apples and mushrooms and carry them to their secret storage.

It is unclear exactly how old this belief is,

Though the Roman author Pliny the Elder mentions hedgehogs gathering grapes by this method in his Naturalis Historia.

In the prophecies of Merlin,

As recounted by Geoffrey of Monmouth in the 12th century,

Several references are made to hedgehogs carrying apples,

While in medieval bestiaries and other illuminated manuscripts dating from at least the 13th century onwards,

Hedgehogs are shown rolling on and impaling fruit to carry back to their dens.

However,

Hedgehogs do not gather food to store for later consumption,

Relying on their deposited fat to survive hibernation.

Nor is apple included in their usual diet.

It has been suggested,

However,

That hedgehogs may use the juice of wild apples to get rid of parasites,

Similar to anting.

The image remains an irresistible one to modern illustrators.

Therefore,

Hedgehogs are often portrayed carrying apples,

Particularly to make them look cuter.

Hedgehogs are often pictured as fond of milk.

In reality,

However,

Hedgehogs are lactose intolerant.

Hedgehogs are also often seen in pictures with an autumn-themed background,

Since the animal hibernates in piles of leaves.

During the 1970s and 1980s,

Hedgehogs were one of the poster animals for environment activists throughout Europe.

In a VEPS legend,

The female hedgehog appears in a creation myth.

According to it,

Early on,

There was no dry land.

The entire world was just a big lake.

It was a giant hedgehog that brought soil and sand with its needles,

Creating dry land.

A hedgehog plays a role in a Lithuanian and Latvian creation story as well.

When God made heaven and earth,

He did not take good measurements,

So the earth was made larger than the heaven.

On the hedgehog's wise suggestion,

God squeezed the earth so that it would fit into the heaven.

In some versions of the legend,

The process of shrinking the earth resulted in the creation of mountain ranges.

To reward the clever hedgehog,

God equipped him with a suit of needles.

A similar legend is attested among the Banat Bulgarians and Romanians as well.

The wisdom of the hedgehog is presented in other folk legends in the Balkans as well.

In a Bulgarian legend,

The sun decided to marry the moon and invited all the animals to the wedding.

The hedgehog was the only one who failed to appear.

The sun went to look for the hedgehog and found him gnawing on a stone.

When the sun inquired what he was doing,

The hedgehog explained,

I'm learning to eat stones.

Once you marry,

You'll have many son children born to you,

And when they all shine in the sky,

Everything will burn.

And there will be nothing to eat.

The sun then decided to call off the wedding,

And the world's inhabitants were saved from starvation.

In the Balkan Slavic and Belarusian folklore,

The wise hedgehog,

Along with the tortoise,

Sometimes appears as the animal capable of finding the raskovnik,

A magic plant that could be used to open locks and to find hidden treasures.

In many Balkan,

Bulgarian,

Macedonian,

Greek folk songs,

The male hedgehog often appears romantically interested in a female tortoise.

His advances are usually unwelcome,

And the tortoise often resort to legal means to deal with the harasser.

Hedgehogs remain largely unseen in modern-day American culture.

On several occasions,

British educational programs have been revised to refer to hedgehogs as porcupines.

May has been designated Hedgehog Month by the International Hedgehog Association.

New Zealand's McGillicuddy Serious Party were unsuccessful in their attempt to get a hedgehog elected to Parliament.

Also in New Zealand,

Hedgehogs feature in the Bogor cartoon by Burden Silver,

Via which they also appeared on a postage stamp.

Meanwhile,

Nicky Slade Robinson and James Antonio's children's picture book,

Hedgehog Hard,

Published by New Zealand's Duck Creek Press,

Uses a hedgehog as a metaphor.

A hedgehog transformer is an early type of electrical transformer designed to work at audio frequencies.

They resemble hedgehogs in size,

Color,

And shape,

And were used in the first part of the 20th century.

Hedgehogs in Popular Culture In Books In Good to Great by James C.

Collins,

He describes a fundamental attribute of successful businesses as their hedgehog concept.

Hans,

My hedgehog,

Is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm.

A wealthy but childless merchant wishes he had a child,

Even a hedgehog,

And comes home to find that his wife has given birth to a baby boy,

Who is a hedgehog from the waist up.

After many trials,

Hans,

My hedgehog,

Marries a princess and becomes a handsome young man.

An even more popular tale in this collection,

The Hare and the Hedgehog,

Is about the race between a hare,

Who is proud of his swift legs,

And a hedgehog.

The hedgehog teams up with his wife,

Who hides on the other side of the field across which the hare and the hedgehog are to race.

The hedgehog does not race all the way,

But simply cowers in his furrow after a few steps.

When the hare has crossed the field,

Mrs.

Hedgehog raises her head on the other side and announces,

I am here already.

They repeat the race until finally the hare dies of exhaustion.

The story illustrates the dangers of pride on the side of the hare.

Who cannot overcome the common hedgehog's cunning.

In Alice's Adventures in Wonderland,

The Queen of Hearts uses hedgehogs and flamingos to play croquet.

Beatrix Potter's Mrs.

Tiggy Winkle stars a hedgehog.

Two hedgehogs of the schoolchild age feature in Kenneth Graham's The Wind and the Willows.

Jan Bratt has featured a hedgehog as the main character in many of her books,

Including The Midden and Hedgie's Surprise.

Hedgehogs are common characters in Brian Jacques' book series Redwall.

In The Animals of Farthingwood by British author Colin Dan,

Several hedgehogs were part of a group of animals that traveled from Farthingwood to the nature reserve White Deer Park.

Isaiah Berlin in The Hedgehog and the Fox takes the hedgehog as the type of person who knows one big thing,

As opposed to the fox who knows many things.

This was taken from a poem by Archilochus.

Similarly,

Stephen Jay Gould refers to a persistent sticking to one strategy hedgehog-like behavior in his Discourse on the Humanities versus Science in The Hedgehog,

The Fox,

And the Magister's Pox.

In Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories,

A hedgehog named Stickly Prickly is one of the main protagonists in the story The Beginning of the Armadillos.

Fuzzy Peg,

A friend of Little Gray Rabbit.

Yona the Hedgehog is a mythical character in Richard Adams' Watership Down.

Shakespeare referenced hedgehogs in The Tempest and Midsummer Night's Dream.

He referred to them as hedgepigs and urchins.

In other media,

The Sonic the Hedgehog franchise owned by Sega focuses on the adventures of Sonic,

An anthropomorphic hedgehog known for his cobalt fur,

Namesake speed,

And love of freedom and adventure.

The franchise is primarily focused on video games,

However there have been multiple animated spinoffs,

A live-action CGI hybrid movie series,

And multiple comic series.

There are also four other hedgehog characters that have persisted across the series and its spinoffs,

Amy Rose,

Shadow,

Silver,

And Metal Sonic,

Who is not necessarily a hedgehog,

But a robot made in Sonic's likeness,

As the name suggests.

The spinoff media has included other hedgehog characters,

Usually family to or alternate versions of Sonic or Amy.

In the Nintendo game Animal Crossing,

The Able Sisters are two female hedgehogs that own a tailor shop for the player to purchase some clothing.

In Animal Crossing City Folk,

A third Able Sister was introduced named LaBelle,

Also known in later installments as LaBelle.

The Mysteries of Alfred Hedgehog stars an anthropomorphized hedgehog.

Mr.

Picklepants is an animated stuffed toy hedgehog from the 2010 Disney Pixar film Toy Story 3,

Who likes to act in stage plays.

He is voiced by actor Timothy Dalton.

Linz Farn Ducla from the online comic strip Kevin and Kel is a hedgehog.

She is highly intelligent and is studying to be a scientist,

Fascinated with genetics,

Astronomy,

And space flight.

She has recently graduated from university with her bachelor's degree and married her high school sweetheart,

Fenton Fuscus,

A bat.

Eagle Ergern is a popular German board game first published in 1990 by Doris Mathouse and Frank Nestle.

The title roughly translates as Hedgehog Erking,

But the game is usually called Hedgehogs in a Hurry in English.

In the game,

Each player races a team of four hedgehogs across a track,

Avoiding mud pits and occasionally piling atop one another.

In the UK,

The magazine Old Glory,

Which covers the vintage vehicle preservation movement,

Had a cartoon strip called Hedgehogs Revenge.

It featured hedgehogs destroying steamrollers in various creative ways,

Including driving one off a cliff.

The strip was part of the Young Restorers page ran in the 1990s and was drawn by someone known only as AJ.

Hedgehog in the Fog is a 1975 animation about a hedgehog who travels through a very foggy wood to visit his friend,

A bear.

Harry Hedgehog is an enemy on Yoshi's Island.

He is an enemy that runs around and extends his quills when Yoshi gets near.

Mega Man 3 on the NES had a robotic hedgehog enemy in Needleman's Stage,

Referred to as Needle Harry in Nintendo Power.

In Mega Man 2 on the Game Boy,

This enemy returns along with Needleman,

And in the list of enemies at the end,

Is referred to as Harry Harry.

Note that in Japanese a hedgehog is a harinetsumi,

Or a needle mouse.

It attacks by firing its spines and can also roll,

During which it is invulnerable.

The Incredible String Band has a song called The Hedgehog's Song in their album The 5,

000 Spirits or The Layers of the Onion.

It was written by Mike Herron.

In Littlest Pet Shop,

Russell Ferguson,

Voiced by Samuel Vincent,

Is a male orange hedgehog,

And the organizer of the group.

Usually he keeps everyone in the Littlest Pet Shop on track,

Making sure the others won't wreck it in the process.

He is often mistaken for a porcupine.

In the 2012 film The Hobbit,

An Unexpected Journey,

The wizard Radagast has a pet hedgehog named Sebastian.

A hedgehog named Russell is one of the major characters in the film Once Upon a Forest.

The Hedgehog's Dilemma,

Or sometimes the Porcupine Dilemma,

Is a metaphor about the challenges of human intimacy.

It describes a situation in which a group of hedgehogs seek to move close to one another to share heat during cold weather.

They must remain apart,

However,

As they cannot avoid hurting one another with their sharp spines.

Though they all share the intention of a close,

Reciprocal relationship,

This cannot occur for unavoidable reasons.

Arthur Schopenhauer conceived this metaphor for the state of the individual in society.

Despite goodwill,

Humans cannot be intimate without the risk of mutual harm,

Leading to cautious and tentative relationships.

It is wise to be guarded with others for fear of getting hurt,

And also fear of causing hurt.

A dilemma may encourage self-imposed isolation.

The concept originates in the following parable from the German philosopher Schopenhauer.

One cold winter's day,

A number of porcupines huddled together quite closely in order,

Through their mutual warmth,

To prevent themselves from being frozen.

But they soon felt the effect of their quills on one another,

Which made them again move apart.

Now,

When the need for warmth once more brought them together,

The drawback of the quills was repeated,

So that they were tossed between two evils,

Until they had discovered the proper distance from which they could best tolerate one another.

Thus,

The need for society,

Which springs from the emptiness and monotony of men's lives,

Drives them together.

But their many unpleasant and repulsive qualities and insufferable drawbacks once more drive them apart.

The mean distance which they finally discover,

And which enables them to endure being together,

Is politeness and good manners.

Whoever does not keep to this is told in England to keep his distance.

By virtues thereof,

It is true that the need for mutual warmth will be only imperfectly satisfied.

But on the other hand,

The brick of the quills will not be felt.

Yet,

Whoever has a great deal of internal warmth of his own will prefer to keep away from society in order to avoid giving or receiving trouble or annoyance.

It entered the realm of psychology after the tale was discovered and adopted by Sigmund Freud.

Schopenhauer's tale was quoted by Freud in a footnote to his 1921 work Group Psychology and the Analysis of the Ego.

Freud stated of his trip to the United States in 1909,

I'm going to the USA to catch sight of a wild porcupine and to give some lectures.

The dilemma has received empirical attention within the contemporary psychological sciences.

John Maynard and his colleagues,

Nathan DeWall,

Roy Baumeister,

And Mark Schaller referred to Schopenhauer's porcupine problem when interpreting results from experiments examining how people respond to ostracism.

The study showed that participants who experienced social exclusion were more likely to seek out new social bonds with others.

Reviews

I like hedgehogs but don't remember much 😴😴 Well done!

Looking forward to listening to more stories in your newly organized format!
As usual, I only lasted a few minutes before sleep hit so thank you! 😻😻

Congratulations on organizing the topics! This is such a wonderful series, thank you so much! 🥰

Of course that's a 5-star review. Thank you, Benjamin.