About
29
Publications
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Introduction
Dr Sophie Lund Rasmussen, or Dr Hedgehog, has engaged in multifaceted research on hedgehogs since 2011 and is a renowned expert on European hedgehogs.
She is leading research on coronavirus, microbiomes and diet choice of hedgehogs, and the effects of robotic lawn mowers on hedgehogs to understand why hedgehogs are declining. Sophie was a co-author of the assessment report leading to the important status change for the European hedgehog from Least Concern to Near Threatened.
Current institution
Current position
- Research Fellow at Linacre College and WildCRU University of Oxford
Additional affiliations
September 2021 - present
Position
- Junior Research Fellow at Linacre College and WildCRU University of Oxford
Description
- Postdoctoral researcher on The Danish Hedgehog Project currently investigating toxicology in Danish hedgehogs
Education
January 2016 - August 2019
September 2010 - April 2013
September 2007 - July 2010
Publications
Publications (29)
Recent regional updates to the IUCN Red List reveal a discouraging tendency: the hedgehog species of Europe are either declining and/or neglected by research and monitoring programmes to such a degree that evaluation of their conservation status remains challenging. Hedgehogs are charismatic nature ambassadors, and they are appreciated widely by th...
Small mammals play important roles as ecological indicators, dispersers of seeds, food for various species, and contributors to a stable and healthy ecosystem. However, the lack of ecological data to inform their conservation remains a significant challenge in the protection of many rare and threatened species in their natural environments. Among t...
European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) inhabit most of Denmark, except for a few smaller islands. Research from other European countries has shown that the hedgehog populations are in decline. The exposure to chemicals might contribute to this development, although their role is currently unknown. Our research studied the occurrence of 19 selecte...
Hedgehogs (order: Eulipotyphla; family: Erinaceidae; subfamily: Erinaceinae) are familiar and popular spiny mammals, but they face many challenges in modern human-dominated environments. In this Special Issue "Applied Hedgehog Conservation Research", we present an anthology of 30 recent articles from the journal Animals, which helps fill some of th...
Hedgehogs (Order Eulipotyphla, Family Erinaceidae, Subfamily Erinaceinae) are familiar and popular spiny mammals, but they face many challenges in modern human-dominated environments [...]
Simple Summary
The European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) is a popular visitor in gardens and recreational areas all over Europe, but hedgehog populations are declining. Research exploring the causes of the decline, including exposure to potentially harmful pollutants and metals, may provide relevant information to improve conservation initiatives...
Simple Summary
The declining populations of European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) are increasingly inhabiting areas with human occupation. However, sharing habitats with humans comes at a cost: a residential garden holds many potential dangers for hedgehogs. Previous research has shown that certain models of robotic lawn mowers may harm hedgehog...
Simple Summary
The European hedgehog is a generally welcomed but nowadays less common guest in residential gardens, as the species is in decline. Sharing habitats with humans comes at a cost: a residential garden holds many potential dangers for hedgehogs. Previous research has shown that certain models of robotic lawn mowers may harm hedgehogs. Th...
The recent development of techniques to sequence ancient DNA has provided valuable insights into the civilisations that came before us. However, the full potential of these methods has yet to be realised. We extracted ancient DNA from a recently exposed fracture surface of a clay brick deriving from the palace of king Ashurnasirpal II (883–859 BCE)...
Sources from Mesopotamia contextualize the emergence of kissing and its role in disease transmission.
Read it here (open access): https://www.science.org/stoken/author-tokens/ST-1229/full
Simple Summary
As populations of European hedgehogs are declining, it is vital that we monitor and understand the population dynamics of this species to optimise conservation initiatives to protect the hedgehogs in the wild. We determined the age of 388 dead European hedgehogs, collected by volunteers from all over Denmark, by counting periosteal g...
Simple Summary
Wildlife rehabilitation centres contribute to the conservation of wildlife by caring for sick, injured and orphaned animals that would not survive in the wild without human help, and releasing healthy animals back into the wild in appropriate habitats. A total of 4388 European hedgehogs, identified as pre-weaned from normally timed l...
This is a popular scientific article in Danish communicating my research on The Danish Hedgehog Project.
Read it here: https://videnskab.dk/forskerzonen/naturvidenskab/hvad-bruger-man-egentlig-697-doede-pindsvin-til
The discovery of antibiotics more than 80 years ago has led to considerable
improvements in human and animal health. Although antibiotic resistance in
environmental bacteria is ancient, resistance in human pathogens is thought to be a
modern phenomenon that is driven by the clinical use of antibiotics1. Here we show
that particular lineages of meth...
Background
The European population of hedgehogs ( Erinaceus europaeus ) is declining. It is therefore essential to optimise conservation initiatives such as the rehabilitation of sick, injured and orphaned hedgehogs. Wild animals placed in captivity may be prone to chronic stress, potentially causing negative health effects. Therefore, the effects...
The European hedgehog population is declining in Europe. It is therefore important to investigate the causes for the decline and monitor the general health of the species. We investigated the endoparasite occurrence in 299 dead European hedgehogs. Of these, endoparasites were detected in 69% of the individuals tested. We identified Crenosoma striat...
Popular scientific communication article about our research on the effects of robotic lawn mowers on hedgehogs.
You can read the article here: https://sciencenordic.com/animals-denmark/do-robotic-lawn-mowers-hurt-hedgehogs-dr-hedgehog-has-the-answer/1856882
A popular scientific communication article in Danish about our research on the effects of robotic lawn mowers on hedgehogs.
The article can be found here:
https://videnskab.dk/forskerzonen/teknologi-innovation/kan-robotplaeneklippere-draebe-pindsvin-doktor-pindsvin-har-svaret
Simple Summary
Injured European hedgehogs are frequently admitted to hedgehog rehabilitation centres with different types of cuts and injuries. Although not rigorously quantified, a growing concern is that an increasing number of cases may have been caused by robotic lawn mowers. Research indicates that European hedgehogs are in decline. It is ther...
Popular scientific description of The Danish Hedgehog Project
You can read the article here: https://videnskab.dk/naturvidenskab/det-danske-pindsvineprojekt-hvordan-har-vores-pindsvin-det-egentlig-derude
Objectives
Low genetic diversity can lead to reduced average fitness in a population or even extinction. Preserving genetic connectivity across fragmented landscapes is therefore vital to counteract the negative consequences of genetic drift and inbreeding. This study aimed to assess the genetic composition and consequently the conservation status...
Objectives Low genetic diversity can lead to reduced average fitness in a population or even extinction. Preserving genetic connectivity across fragmented landscapes is therefore vital to counteract the negative consequences of genetic drift and inbreeding. This study aimed to assess the genetic composition and consequently the conservation status...
A popular scientific article about the Danish Hedgehog Project.
European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) populations are widespread across diverse habitats but are declining in Western Europe. Drastic declines have been described in the UK, with the most severe declines occurring in rural areas. Hedgehogs are widely distributed in Denmark, but their status remains unknown.
Fieldwork on hedgehogs has tended to fo...
The objective of the study was to establish and refine a method for the genomic characterization of European hedgehogs in Denmark using the second-generation genotyping technique, genotyping by sequencing (GBS). Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were filtered with a read coverage between 20 - 100 and a maximum number of missing data of 25 %. I...
Objectives
A recent study from Sweden showed that European hedgehogs may constitute a reservoir for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), but this host-parasite relationship remains to be investigated in other countries. In this study, we therefore sought to: 1) determine the dissemination of MRSA in European hedgehogs throughout Denm...
