THE SOUTH AFRICAN HEDGEHOG 



therefore we cannot claim the Hedgehog is even 

 highly resistant to snake venom, for a young venomous 

 snake a foot in length is capable of injecting from 

 two to four drops at a single bite. If a Hedgehog 

 living in a country teeming with snakes is not 

 immune to snake venom, it is highly improbable 

 that the European Hedgehog would be otherwise, 

 for the only poisonous snake it is ever likely to 

 encounter is the European Viper, Nature would 

 be, therefore, wasting her energies in rendering an 

 animal immune to snake venom for no purpose. 



Snakes are not destroyed by the little Hedgehog 

 merely for sport. They furnish a delicious meal, 

 for their flesh is soft and juicy. Rats and Mice 

 also form part of the diet of this unique little 

 creature. It preys largely upon the Striped Field 

 Mouse (Rhabdomys pumilio), which swarms all over 

 South Africa, on the veld, hill-sides and bushy 

 country. 



These mice build their nests in low shrubs, in 

 tufts of grass, between the roots of trees, and 

 crevices among stones. In these nests the young 

 are born and reared. The number produced at a 

 birth averages from five to ten, and, like all the 

 rat and mouse family, the Striped Field Mice 

 breed frequently. If these rodents were allowed 

 to multiply unchecked, they would soon become a 

 fearful scourge to the farmer and gardener. Happily, 

 however, they have many natural enemies, and the 

 Hedgehog is one of them. Seeking out the nest, 



21 



