NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
West European Hedgehog
Erinaceus europaeus Linnaeus, 1758
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus), also known as the West European hedgehog or common hedgehog, is a hedgehog species native to Europe from Iberia and Italy northwards into Scandinavia and westwards into Ireland. 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 declining severely in Great Britain, where it is now Red Listed, meaning that it is considered to be at risk of local extinction. Outside its native range the species was introduced to New Zealand during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Wikipedia contributors, European hedgehog; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T09:49:40.615235+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Erinaceus europaeus Linnaeus, 1758
- Name authority
- Linnaeus, 1758
- Common name
- West European Hedgehog
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Eulipotyphla
- Family
- Erinaceidae
- Genus
- Erinaceus
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classMammalia Linnaeus, 1758
- subclassTheria Parker & Haswell, 1897
- infraclassEutheria Gill, 1872
- orderEulipotyphla Waddell, Okada & Hasegawa, 1999
- familyErinaceidae G. Fischer, 1814
- subfamilyErinaceinae G. Fischer, 1814
- genusErinaceus Linnaeus, 1758
- speciesErinaceus europaeus Linnaeus, 1758
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Erinaceus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Northern White-Breasted HedgehogErinaceus roumanicus Barrett-Hamilton, 1900 | ErinaceidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Amur HedgehogErinaceus amurensis Schrenk, 1859 | ErinaceidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Southern White-Breasted HedgehogErinaceus concolor Martin, 1838 | ErinaceidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=633540 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:3B2C2. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.