Articles | Volume 25, issue 2
https://doi.org/10.5194/we-25-177-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/we-25-177-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Standard article
| 
07 Oct 2025
Standard article |
| 07 Oct 2025
| 07 Oct 2025
Urban wildlife monitoring using citizen science suggests that European hedgehogs and badgers select different habitats
Daniel Issel
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Department of Ecosystem Management, Climate and Biodiversity, BOKU University, Vienna, 1180, Austria
Department of Evolutionary Ecology, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Berlin 10315, Germany
Gregor Laaha
Department of Natural Sciences and Sustainable Resources, BOKU University, Vienna, 1190, Austria
Johannes Laimighofer
Department of Natural Sciences and Sustainable Resources, BOKU University, Vienna, 1190, Austria
Johann G. Zaller
Department of Ecosystem Management, Climate and Biodiversity, BOKU University, Vienna, 1180, Austria
Richard Zink
Department of Interdisciplinary Life Sciences, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Vienna, 1160, Austria
Daniel Dörler
Department of Ecosystem Management, Climate and Biodiversity, BOKU University, Vienna, 1180, Austria
Florian Heigl
Department of Ecosystem Management, Climate and Biodiversity, BOKU University, Vienna, 1180, Austria
Related authors
No articles found.
Vinzent Klaus, Johannes Laimighofer, and Fabian Lehner
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-2024-224, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-2024-224, 2025
Revised manuscript under review for NHESS
Short summary
Short summary
On 17 August 2024, a thunderstorm in Vienna led to a record-breaking rainfall of 110 mm in two hours. An analysis of the exceptionally long hourly rain gauge time series (since 1941) estimates this event's return period at 662 years. The extremity of the event is further confirmed by neighbouring weather stations and rain-radar data.
Florian Heigl, Susanne Lutter, Irene Hoppe, Johann G. Zaller, and Daniel Dörler
Web Ecol., 24, 41–46, https://doi.org/10.5194/we-24-41-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/we-24-41-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Road traffic is a key threat to global animal biodiversity, causing numerous fatalities. In Vienna, we gathered vertebrate roadkill data via citizen science, bicycle, and foot monitoring. Only 4 roadkill incidents were observed during monitoring; citizens reported 84 cases. Hedgehogs and urban birds were frequent roadkill. Our findings indicate low urban roadkill rates, highlighting the importance of citizen science and expanding monitoring routes.
Klaus Haslinger, Wolfgang Schöner, Jakob Abermann, Gregor Laaha, Konrad Andre, Marc Olefs, and Roland Koch
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 2749–2768, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-23-2749-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-23-2749-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Future changes of surface water availability in Austria are investigated. Alterations of the climatic water balance and its components are analysed along different levels of elevation. Results indicate in general wetter conditions with particular shifts in timing of the snow melt season. On the contrary, an increasing risk for summer droughts is apparent due to increasing year-to-year variability and decreasing snow melt under future climate conditions.
Gregor Laaha
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 27, 2019–2034, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-2019-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-2019-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
In seasonal climates with a warm and a cold season, low flows are generated by different processes so that return periods used as a measure of event severity will be inaccurate. We propose a novel mixed copula estimator that is shown to outperform previous calculation methods. The new method is highly relevant for a wide range of European river flow regimes and should be used by default.
Gregor Laaha
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 27, 689–701, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-689-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-689-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Knowing the severity of an extreme event is of particular importance to hydrology and water policies. In this paper we propose a mixed distribution approach for low flows. It provides one consistent approach to quantify the severity of summer, winter, and annual low flows based on their respective annualities (or return periods). We show that the new method is much more accurate than existing methods and should therefore be used by engineers and water agencies.
Johannes Laimighofer, Michael Melcher, and Gregor Laaha
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 26, 4553–4574, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-4553-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-4553-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Our study uses a statistical boosting model for estimating low flows on a monthly basis, which can be applied to estimate low flows at sites without measurements. We use an extensive dataset of 260 stream gauges in Austria for model development. As we are specifically interested in low-flow events, our method gives specific weight to such events. We found that our method can considerably improve the predictions of low-flow events and yields accurate estimates of the seasonal low-flow variation.
Veit Blauhut, Michael Stoelzle, Lauri Ahopelto, Manuela I. Brunner, Claudia Teutschbein, Doris E. Wendt, Vytautas Akstinas, Sigrid J. Bakke, Lucy J. Barker, Lenka Bartošová, Agrita Briede, Carmelo Cammalleri, Ksenija Cindrić Kalin, Lucia De Stefano, Miriam Fendeková, David C. Finger, Marijke Huysmans, Mirjana Ivanov, Jaak Jaagus, Jiří Jakubínský, Svitlana Krakovska, Gregor Laaha, Monika Lakatos, Kiril Manevski, Mathias Neumann Andersen, Nina Nikolova, Marzena Osuch, Pieter van Oel, Kalina Radeva, Renata J. Romanowicz, Elena Toth, Mirek Trnka, Marko Urošev, Julia Urquijo Reguera, Eric Sauquet, Aleksandra Stevkov, Lena M. Tallaksen, Iryna Trofimova, Anne F. Van Loon, Michelle T. H. van Vliet, Jean-Philippe Vidal, Niko Wanders, Micha Werner, Patrick Willems, and Nenad Živković
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 2201–2217, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-22-2201-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-22-2201-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Recent drought events caused enormous damage in Europe. We therefore questioned the existence and effect of current drought management strategies on the actual impacts and how drought is perceived by relevant stakeholders. Over 700 participants from 28 European countries provided insights into drought hazard and impact perception and current management strategies. The study concludes with an urgent need to collectively combat drought risk via a European macro-level drought governance approach.
Johannes Laimighofer, Michael Melcher, and Gregor Laaha
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 26, 129–148, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-129-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-129-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
This study aims to predict long-term averages of low flow on a hydrologically diverse dataset in Austria. We compared seven statistical learning methods and included a backward variable selection approach. We found that separating the low-flow processes into winter and summer low flows leads to good performance for all the models. Variable selection results in more parsimonious and more interpretable models. Linear approaches for prediction and variable selection are sufficient for our dataset.
Ronnie Walcher, Raja Imran Hussain, Johannes Karrer, Andreas Bohner, David Brandl, Johann G. Zaller, Arne Arnberger, and Thomas Frank
Web Ecol., 20, 143–152, https://doi.org/10.5194/we-20-143-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/we-20-143-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
The abandonment of extensively managed mountainous meadows affects the diversity of both plants and associated pollinators. However, not much is known about the effects of abandonment on hoverflies which consitute an important pollinator group in grasslands. Our research suggests that extensive management is most beneficial in preserving hoverfly richness in mountainous grasslands.
Cited articles
App, M., Strohbach, M. W., Schneider, A. K., and Schröder, B.: Making the case for gardens: Estimating the contribution of urban gardens to habitat provision and connectivity based on hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus), Landscape Urban Plan., 220, 104347, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2021.104347, 2022.
Araújo, M. B.: The coincidence of people and biodiversity in Europe, Global Ecol. Biogeogr., 12, 5–12, https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1466-822X.2003.00314.x, 2003.
Auguie, B.: gridExtra: Miscellaneous Functions for “Grid” Graphics, R package version 2.3, https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=gridExtra (last access: 26 February 2025), 2017.
Baker, P. J. and Harris, S.: Urban mammals: what does the future hold? An analysis of the factors affecting patterns of use of residential gardens in Great Britain, Mam. Rev., 37, 297–315, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2907.2007.00102.x, 2007.
Balestrieri, A., Remonti, L., and Prigioni, C.: Habitat Selection in a Low-Density Badger Meles meles Population: A Comparison of Radio-Tracking and Latrine Surveys, Wildlife Biol., 15, 442–448, https://doi.org/10.2981/08-027, 2009.
Balestrieri, A., Cardarelli, E., Pandini, M., Remonti, L., Saino, N., and Prigioni, C.: Spatial organisation of European badger (Meles meles) in northern Italy as assessed by camera-trapping, Eur. J. Wildl. Res., 62, 219–226, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10344-016-0996-y, 2016.
BOKU University, Vienna: Roadkill. Occurrence dataset, GBIF [data set], https://doi.org/10.15468/ejb47y, 2024.
Braaker, S., Kormann, U., Bontadina, F., and Obrist, M. K.: Prediction of genetic connectivity in urban ecosystems by combining detailed movement data, genetic data and multi-path modelling, Landscape Urban Plan., 160, 107–114, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2016.12.011, 2017.
Davison, J., Huck, M., Delahay, R. J., and Roper, T. J.: Restricted ranging behaviour in a high-density population of urban badgers, J. Zool., 277, 45–53, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7998.2008.00509.x, 2009.
Doncaster, C. P.: Testing the role of intraguild predation in regulating hedgehog populations, Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 249, 113–117, https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.1992.0092, 1992.
Dowding, C. V., Harris, S., Poulton, S., and Baker, P. J.: Nocturnal ranging behaviour of urban hedgehogs, Erinaceus europaeus, in relation to risk and reward, Anim. Behav., 80, 13–21, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2010.04.007, 2010.
Feore, S. and Montgomery, W. I.: Habitat effects on the spatial ecology of the European badger (Meles meles), J. Zool., 247, 537–549, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7998.1999.tb01015.x, 1999.
Fischer, C. and Weber, J.-M.: Distribution of badger setts and latrines in an intensively cultivated landscape, Rev. Suisse Zool., 110, 661–668, https://doi.org/10.5962/bhl.part.80204, 2003.
Fox, J. and Weisberg, S.: An R Companion to Applied Regression, Third edition, Sage, Thousand Oaks CA, https://www.john-fox.ca/Companion/ (last access: 26 February 2025), 2019.
Gazzard, A. and Baker, P. J.: Patterns of Feeding by Householders Affect Activity of Hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) during the Hibernation Period, Animals 10, 1344, https://doi.org/10.3390/ani10081344, 2020.
Gazzard, A. and Rasmussen, S. L.: Erinaceus europaeus, The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2024, e.T29650A213411773, https://doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2024-2.RLTS.T29650A213411773.en, (last access: 7 November 2024).
Gazzard, A., Yarnell, R. W., and Baker, P. J.: Fine-scale habitat selection of a small mammalian urban adapter: the West European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus), Mamm. Biol., 102, 387–403, https://doi.org/10.1007/s42991-022-00251-5, 2022.
Geiger, M., Taucher, A. L., Gloor, S., Hegglin, D., and Botadina, F.: In the footsteps of city foxes: evidence for a rise of urban badger populations in Switzerland, Hystrix, 236–238, https://doi.org/10.4404/hystrix-00069-2018, 2018.
Goldstein, B. R. and de Valpine, P.: Comparing N−mixture models and GLMMs for relative abundance estimation in a citizen science dataset, Sci Rep 12, 12276, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-16368-z, 2022.
Gomes, D. J., Wierzbowska, I. A., Bevanger, K., O'Mahony, D. T., and Rola, K.: Diet of the European badgers (Meles meles) in urban and rural areas of Norway, Eur. J. Wildl. Res., 66, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10344-019-1347-6, 2019.
Haberfellner, J., Kutschker, M., Jäpel, J., and Lutter, J.: Wiener Umweltbericht 2020/2021, Stadt Wien-Umweltschutz, 2022.
Harris, S.: Ecology of Urban badgers Meles meles: Distribution in Britain and habitat selection, persecution, food and damage in the city of Bristol, Biol. Conserv., 28, 349–375, https://doi.org/10.1016/0006-3207(84)90041-7, 1984.
Heigl, F., Horvath, K., Laaha, G., Zaller, J.: Amphibian and reptile road-kills on tertiary roads in relation to landscape structure: using a citizen science approach with open-access land cover data, BMC Ecol., 17, 24, https://doi.org/10.1186/s12898-017-0134-z, 2017.
Heigl, F., Teufelbauer, N., Resch, S., Schweiger, S., Stückler, S., and Dörler, D.: A dataset of road-killed vertebrates collected via citizen science from 2014-2020, Sci. Data, 9, 504, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-022-01599-6, 2022.
Heikinheimo, V., Tenkanen, H., Bergroth, C., Järv, O., Hiippala, T., and Toivonen, T.: Understanding the use of urban green spaces from user-generated geographic information, Landscape Urban Plan., 201, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2020.103845, 2020.
Hof, A. R.: A study of the current status of the hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus), and its decline in Great Britain since 1960, PhD thesis, Roywal Holloway University of London, 2009.
Hof, A. R. and Bright, P. W.: The value of green-spaces in built-up areas for hedgehogs, Lutra, 69–82, 2009.
Hof, A. R., Snellenberg, J., and Bright, P. W.: Food or fear? Predation risk mediates edge refuging in an insectivorous mammal, Anim. Behav., 83, 1099–1106, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2012.01.042, 2012.
Hof, A. R., Allen, A. M., and Bright, P. W.: Investigating the Role of the Eurasian Badger (Meles meles) in the Nationwide Distribution of the Western European Hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) in England, Animals, 9, https://doi.org/10.3390/ani9100759, 2019.
Hubert, P., Julliard, R., Biagianti, S., and Poulle, M.-L.: Ecological factors driving the higher hedgehog (Erinaceus europeaus) density in an urban area compared to the adjacent rural area, Landscape Urban Plan., 103, 34–43, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2011.05.010, 2011.
Huck, M., Davison, J., and Roper, T. J.: Predicting European badger Meles meles sett distribution in urban environments, Wildlife Biol., 14, 188–198, https://doi.org/10.2981/0909-6396(2008)14[188:PEBMMS]2.0.CO;2, 2008.
Issel, D.: Urban wildlife monitoring using citizen science suggests that European hedgehogs and badgers select different habitats, Zenodo [code], https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.16358732, 2025.
Ives, C. D., Lentini, P. E., Threlfall, C. G., Ikin, K., Shanahan, D. F., Garrard, G. E., Bekessy, S. A., Fuller, R. A., Mumaw, L., Rayner, L., Rowe, R., Valentine, L. E., and Kendal, D.: Cities are hotspots for threatened species, Global Ecol. Biogeogr., 25, 117–126, https://doi.org/10.1111/geb.12404, 2016.
Kettel, E. F., Gentle, L. K., Quinn, J. L., and Yarnell, R. W.: The breeding performance of raptors in urban landscapes: a review and meta-analysis, J. Ornithol., 159, 1–18, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-017-1497-9, 2018.
Korslund, L. M., Floden, M. S., Albertsen, M. M. S., Landsverk, A., Løkken, K. M. V., and Johansen, B. S.: Home Range, Movement, and Nest Use of Hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) in an Urban Environment Prior to Hibernation, Animals, 14, https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14010130, 2023.
Kranz, A., Abramov, A. V., Herrero, J., and Maran, T.: Meles meles, The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016, https://doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-1.RLTS.T29673A45203002.en, 2016.
Kruuk, H. and Parish, T.: Feeding Specialization of the European Badger Meles meles in Scotland, J. Anim. Ecol., 50, 773–788, https://doi.org/10.2307/4136, 1981.
Kutner, M. H., Nachtsheim, C., and Neter, J.: Applied linear regression models, 4th edn., The McGraw-Hill/Irwin series: operations and decision sciences, 1 online resource, McGraw-Hill/Irwin, Boston, New York, ISBN 0072386916, 2004.
Levandowsky, M. and Winter, D.: Distance between Sets, Nature, 234, 34–35, https://doi.org/10.1038/234034a0, 1971.
Łopucki, R., Kitowski, I., Perlińska-Teresiak, M., and Klich, D.: How Is Wildlife Affected by the COVID-19 Pandemic? Lockdown Effect on the Road Mortality of Hedgehogs, Animals, 11, https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11030868, 2021.
Lovell, C., Li, S., Turner, J., and Carbone, C.: The effect of habitat and human disturbance on the spatiotemporal activity of two urban carnivores: The results of an intensive camera trap study, Ecol. Evol., 12, e8746, https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.8746, 2022.
Lowry, H., Lill, A., and Wong, B.: Behavioural responses of wildlife to urban environments, Biol. Rev., 88, https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.12012, 2013.
Lumley, T., Diehr, P., Emerson, S., and Chen, L.: The importance of the normality assumption in large public health data sets, Annu. Rev. Publ. Health, 23, 151–169, https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.publhealth.23.100901.140546, 2002.
Macdonald, D. W., Newman, C., Dean, J., Buesching, C. D., and Johnson, P. J.: The distribution of Eurasian badger, Meles meles, setts in a high-density area: field observations contradict the sett dispersion hypothesis, Oikos, 106, 295–307, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0030-1299.2004.12879.x, 2004.
Marco-Tresserras, J. and López-Iborra, G. M.: The effect of sex on home range in an urban population of European hedgehogs Erinaceus europaeus at the southern edge of its distribution, Anim. Biodiv. Conserv., 269–279, https://doi.org/10.32800/abc.2022.45.0269, 2022.
Matthews, F., Kubasiewicz, L. M., Gurnell, J., Harrower, C. A., McDonald, R. A., and Shore, R. F.: A review of the population and conservation status of British mammals, Natural England Joint Publication, JP025, Natural England, Peterborough, England, ISBN 978-1-78354-494-3, 699 pp., 2018.
Micol, T., Doncaster, C. P., and Mackinlay, L. A.: Correlates of Local Variation in the Abundance of Hedgehogs Erinaceus europaeus, J. Anim. Ecol., 63, 851, https://doi.org/10.2307/5262, 1994.
Microsoft Corporation: Microsoft® Excel® for Microsoft 365 MSO (Version 2501 Build 16.0.18429.20132) 64 Bit, https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/excel (last access: 10 October 2024).
Morris, P. A.: A study of home range and movements in the hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus), J. Zool., 214, 433–449, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7998.1988.tb03751.x, 1988.
Nottingham, C., Glen, A., and Stanley, M.: Snacks in the city: the diet of hedgehogs in Auckland urban forest fragments, New Zeal. J. Ecol., 43, https://doi.org/10.20417/nzjecol.43.24, 2019.
Obidziński, A., Pabjanek, P., and Mędrzycki, P.: Determinants of badger Meles meles sett location in Białowieża Primeval Forest, northeastern Poland, Wildlife Biol., 19, 48–68, https://doi.org/10.2981/11-074, 2013.
Pettett, C. E., Moorhouse, T. P., Johnson, P. J., and Macdonald, D. W.: Factors affecting hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) attraction to rural villages in arable landscapes, Eur. J. Wildl. Res., 63, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10344-017-1113-6, 2017.
Pettett, C. E., Johnson, P. J., Moorhouse, T. P., and Macdonald, D. W.: National predictors of hedgehog Erinaceus europaeus distribution and decline in Britain, Mamm. Rev., 48, 1–6, https://doi.org/10.1111/mam.12107, 2018.
Piza-Roca, C., van 't Zelfde, M., La Haye, M. J. J., Jongejans, E., and Raes, N.: European badger habitat requirements in the Netherlands – combining ecological niche models with neighbourhood analysis, Wildlife Biol., 2018, 1–11, https://doi.org/10.2981/wlb.00453, 2018.
QGIS Development Team: QGIS Geographic Information System, Open Source Geospatial Foundation Project, https://qgis.org/ (last access: 26 February 2025), 2023.
Rasmussen, S. L., Berg, T. B., Martens, H. J., and Jones, O. R.: Anyone Can Get Old-All You Have to Do Is Live Long Enough: Understanding Mortality and Life Expectancy in European Hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus), Animals, 13, https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13040626, 2023.
Rautio, A., Isomursu, M., Valtonen, A., Hirvelä-Koski, V., and Kunnasranta, M.: Mortality, diseases and diet of European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) in an urban environment in Finland, Mamm. Res., 61, 161–169, https://doi.org/10.1007/s13364-015-0256-7, 2015.
R Core Team: R: A Language and Environment for Statistical Computing, R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria, https://www.R-project.org/ (last access: 26 February 2025), 2023.
Reid, N., Etherington, T. R., Wilson, G. J., Montgomery, W. I., and McDonald, R. A.: Monitoring and population estimation of the European badger Meles meles in Northern Ireland, Wildlife Biol., 18, 46–57, https://doi.org/10.2981/11-016, 2012.
Rondinini, C. and Doncaster, C. P.: Roads as barriers to movement for hedgehogs, Funct. Ecol., 16, 504–509, https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2435.2002.00651.x, 2002.
RStudio Team: RStudio: Integrated Development Environment for R (Version 2024.04.2 Build 764), RStudio, PBC, https://posit.co (last access: 26 February 2025), 2024.
Šálek, M., Drahníková, L., and Tkadlec, E.: Changes in home range sizes and population densities of carnivore species along the natural to urban habitat gradient, Mamm. Rev., 45, 1–14, https://doi.org/10.1111/mam.12027, 2015.
Santini, L., González-Suárez, M., Russo, D., Gonzalez-Voyer, A., Von Hardenberg, A., and Ancillotto, L.: One strategy does not fit all: determinants of urban adaptation in mammals, Ecol. Lett., 22, https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13199, 2018.
Schaus, J., Uzal, A., Gentle, L. K., Baker, P. J., Bearman-Brown, L., Bullion, S., Gazzard, A., Lockwood, H., North, A., Reader, T., Scott, D. M., Sutherland, C. S., and Yarnell, R. W.: Application of the Random Encounter Model in citizen science projects to monitor animal densities, Remote Sens. Ecol. Conserv., 6, 514–528, https://doi.org/10.1002/rse2.153, 2020.
Schley, L., Schaul, M., and Ropert, T. J.: Distribution and population density of badgers Meles meles in Luxembourg, Mam. Rev., 34, 233–240, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2907.2004.00040.x, 2004.
Schwierz, G. and Wachendörfer, G.: Studie über die Ursachen des starken Rückganges der Dachspopulation in Hessen im Zeitraum 1952–1977, Eur. J. Wildl. Res., 27, 145–153, https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02243708, 1981.
Smith, G. and Wilkinson, D.: Modelling disease spread in a novel host: rabies in the European badger Meles meles. Journal of Applied Ecology, 39, 865–874, https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2664.2002.00773.x, 2002.
Taucher, A. L., Gloor, S., Dietrich, A., Geiger, M., Hegglin, D., and Bontadina, F.: Decline in Distribution and Abundance: Urban Hedgehogs under Pressure, Animals, 10, https://doi.org/10.3390/ani10091606, 2020.
Tiago, P., Ceia-Hasse, A., Marques, T. A., Capinha, C. and Pereira H. M.: Spatial distribution of citizen science casuistic observations for different taxonomic groups, Sci Rep 7, 12832, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-13130-8, 2017.
United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (UNDESA): World urbanization prospects: The 2018 revision, New York, 103 pp., 2019.
University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna: Roadkill, Occurrence dataset, GBIF [data set], https://doi.org/10.15468/ejb47y, 2024.
van de Poel, J. L., Dekker, J., and Langevelde, F.: Dutch hedgehogs Erinaceus europaeus are nowadays mainly found in urban areas, possibly due to the negative Effects of badgers Meles meles, Wildlife Biol., 21, 51–55, https://doi.org/10.2981/wlb.00072, 2015.
van den Berge, K., van der Veken, T., Gouwy, J., Verschelde, P., and Eeraerts, M.: Dietary composition and overlap among small- and medium-sized carnivores in Flanders, Belgium, Ecol. Res., 37, 163–170, https://doi.org/10.1111/1440-1703.12276, 2022.
Venables, W. N. and Ripley, B. D.: Modern Applied Statistics with S, Fourth Edition, Springer, New York, ISBN 0-387-95457-0, 2002.
Walter, T., Zink, R., Laaha, G., Zaller, J. G., and Heigl, F.: Fox sightings in a city are related to certain land use classes and sociodemographics: results from a citizen science project, BMC Ecol., 18, 50, https://doi.org/10.1186/s12898-018-0207-7, 2018.
Wickham, H.: ggplot2: Elegant Graphics for Data Analysis, Springer-Verlag New York, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-24277-4, 2016.
Wickham, H., Averick, M., Bryan, J., Chang, W., McGowan, L. D., François, R., Grolemund, G., Hayes, A., Henry, L., Hester, J., Kuhn, M., Pedersen, T. L., Miller, E., Bache, S. M., Müller, K., Ooms, J., Robinson, D., Seidel, D. P., Spinu, V., Takahashi, K., Vaughan, D., Wilke, C., Woo, K., and Yutani, H.: “Welcome to the tidyverse.”, Journal of Open Source Software, 4, 1686, https://doi.org/10.21105/joss.01686, 2019.
Williams, B. M., Baker, P. J., Thomas, E., Wilson, G., Judge, J., and Yarnell, R. W.: Reduced occupancy of hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) in rural England and Wales: The influence of habitat and an asymmetric intra-guild predator, Sci. Rep.-UK, 8, 12156, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-30130-4, 2018a.
Williams, B., Mann, N., Neumann, J. L., Yarnell, R. W., and Baker, P. J.: A prickly problem: developing a volunteer-friendly tool for monitoring populations of a terrestrial urban mammal, the West European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus), Urban Ecosyst., 21, 1075–1086, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11252-018-0795-1, 2018b.
Williams, R. L., Stafford, R., and Goodenough, A. E.: Biodiversity in urban gardens: Assessing the accuracy of citizen science data on garden hedgehogs, Urban Ecosyst., 18, 819–833, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11252-014-0431-7, 2015.
Wine, S., Gagné, S. A., and Meentemeyer, R. K.: Understanding human–coyote encounters in urban ecosystems using citizen science data: what do socioeconomics tell us?, Environ. Manage., 55, 159–170, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-014-0373-0, 2015.
Wright, P. G. R., Coomber, F. G., Bellamy, C. C., Perkins, S. E., and Mathews, F.: Predicting hedgehog mortality risks on British roads using habitat suitability modelling, PeerJ, 7, e8154, https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.8154, 2020.
Young, R. P., Davison, J., Trewby, I. D., Wilson, G. J., Delahay, R. J., and Doncaster, C. P.: Abundance of hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) in relation to the density and distribution of badgers (Meles meles), J. Zool., 269, 349–356, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7998.2006.00078.x, 2006.
Zink, R. and Walter, T.: Where pathways cross: citizen science project StadtWildTiere in Vienna, Austria, Front. Environ. Sci. Conference Abstract, Austrian Citizen Science Conference 2016, https://doi.org/10.3389/conf.FENVS.2016.01.00007, 2016.
Short summary
Our study analyzed the distribution of 356 hedgehog and 918 badger sightings from 2012 to 2023 in Vienna, Austria. Both species were reported in areas with a mix of built-up spaces and green areas but not arable land, which can have ecological and methodological reasons. Moreover, hedgehogs and badgers were mostly reported from different areas. Our findings suggest that citizen science can be a good data source to analyze urban human–wildlife interactions.
Our study analyzed the distribution of 356 hedgehog and 918 badger sightings from 2012 to 2023...
