OUR Cumbrian wildlife is under constant threat from both natural and man-made hazards and as we creep deeper into the winter months, it is more important than ever that we look after our local creatures

BATS

News emerged this week that windfarms are likely to be killing tens of thousands of bats every year. There are a great deal of wind turbines in Cumbria, including the latest developments that have been made to the windfarm at Kirkby Moor, one of the oldest wind farms in the country.

A study by the University of Exeter, which looked at 29 windfarms across the UK, showed that 194 bats a month were killed. After factoring in all of Britain’s onshore windfarms, it means there could be around 80,000 bats killed each year by turbines.

Conservation manager David Harpley, of the Cumbria Wildlife Trust, said: “Bats remain under serious threat from things like loss of roost spaces in old buildings and the general decline in insects which are their food. Wind turbines are an additional threat to their survival and we should be concerned about this.”

TAKE OUR BAT QUIZ:

Most people in south Cumbria are not aware just how many bats we have living among us.

Neil Winder, 43, from Backbarrow, is the head ranger for the Langdale Valley and often leads bat walks to educate people about our local flying mammals. He said: "Langdale has six of the 17 species of bat found in UK, the common pipistrelle, soprano pipistrelle, brown long-eared, noctule, Daubenton's and whiskered/Brandt's."

Neil hopes that by leading bat walks in the national park area, more people will take an interest in bat welfare, as there are plenty of events throughout the rest of the year run by the Bat Conservation Trust. The issue of windfarms has shocked the nation and there is yet to be any suggested solutions.

READ MORE:

Spare a thought for our native bats this Halloween

HEDGEHOGS

People in south Cumbria can't have failed to notice just how cold it has become over the last week. Snow has been peppered around Ulverston already and the Arctic front we were promised seems to have well and truly arrived. This abrupt change from a mild October to a steely November has taken many of our woodland creatures by surprise, including our beloved Tiggywinkle hedgehogs.

Irene Cannon 73, of Beckside Road, Dalton, is the founder of Furness Hedgehog Rescue which she set up 12 years ago following the death of her husband.

She said: "This week I made the decision to keep all of the hedgehogs in my care until the spring.

"I am still not sure whether it is the right decision as many of them are fairly large but I think that this winter will be so cold they could perish. It is also impossible for them to dig for food as the ground is frozen solid.

"I have read predictions that this winter will be reminiscent of the winter of 1963. That was the year I got married so I remember it well - the weather was so bitter that wild creatures froze to death, not just hedgehogs but birds too."

Irene has 70 hedgehogs at her home in Dalton and is still urging people to bring in any poorly hedgehogs they encounter.

She said: "If people still have hedgehogs visiting their homes, then it is really important to leave out some fresh water as their usual sources could be frozen solid. Many people think they hibernate all the way through winter but that is not the case. They will continue to wake up feeling hungry throughout the colder months."

Irene has now released a wishlist on her Furness Hedgehog Rescue Facebook page to ask hedgehog lovers throughout the Furness area to help her take care of these lovely, spiny friends throughout the winter. The cost of keeping them will obviously be steep so if you would like to help look after the hedgehogs, you can visit Irene's page at www.facebook.com/Furness-Hedgehog-Rescue.

Winter hedgehog care wish list

If you want to help out Irene with the care of her 70 Furness hedgehogs this winter, you can contribute to her "wishlist" on Amazon under the name Furness Hedgehog Rescue.

Here is what it takes to look after poorly hedgehogs full time:

1. Barley straw (this is softer than ordinary straw and easier to build nests from).

2. Whiskers kitten biscuits in chicken flavour.

3. Whiskers tinned wet cat food in chicken flavour with jelly (not gravy!)

4. Meal worms, which are a favourite treat for hedghogs but do not contain enough nutrition to sustain them fully. Irene uses them alongside the dry or wet cat food like salt and pepper.

5. Cleaning essentials such as kitchen rolls and bin bags because 70 hedgehogs take a lot of upkeep!

Irene's Furness Hedgehog Rescue centre is based at her house in Beckside Road, Dalton.

READ MORE:

Remember, Remember our Cumbrian hedgehogs on bonfire night

Feel inspired to get your children back in to reading after BBC tribute to the Lake District

Go nuts for the native nutkin during red squirrel week