 the european hedgehog (erinaceus europaeus: linnaeus, 1758), or common hedgehog is a hedgehog species found in western europe, from the iberian peninsula and italy northwards into scandinavia.harris, s. & yalden, d.w. (2008) mammals of the british isles: handbook, 4th edition, the mammal society, southampton. it is a generally common and widely distributed species that can survive across a wide range of habitat types. it is a well-known species, and a favourite in european gardens, both for its endearing appearance and its preference for eating a range of garden pests. while populations are currently stable across much of its range, it is thought to be declining severely in the uk.iucn 'red list' erinaceus europaeus ==description== thumb|left|skeleton e. europaeus has a generalised body structure with unspecialised limb girdles.reeve, n. j. (1994) hedgehogs. t & ad poyser ltd., london. p7 the animal appears brownish with most of its body covered by up to 6,000 brown and white spines.morris, p. a. (2006) the new hedgehog book. whittet books, london. length of head and body is ~ at weaning, increasing to  or more in large adults. this species has an extremely short tail as an almost vestigal feature, typically .harris, s. & yalden, d.w. (2008). mammals of the british isles: handbook, 4th edition. mammal society, southampton. pp241-249. weight increases from around  at weaning to >  in adulthood. the maximum recorded weight is 2,000 g (4.4&nbsp;lb), though few wild specimens exceed 1,600 g (3.5&nbsp;lb) even in autumn.reeve, n. j. (1994) hedgehogs. t & ad poyser ltd., london. p16 adult summer weight is typically somewhat less than in autumn, with an average of around {{convert|800|g|lb|abbr=on}
Animals_described_in_1758 Animals_with_sequenced_genomes Hedgehogs IUCN_Red_List_least_concern_species Mammals_of_Europe Mammals_of_New_Zealand Mammals_of_Russia Mammals_of_the_Azores