Testing the Impact of Robotic Lawn Mowers on European Hedgehogs (<i>Erinaceus europaeus</i>) and Designing a Safety Test

Abstract

Previous research has established that some models of robotic lawn mowers are potentially harmful to hedgehogs. As the market for robotic lawn mowers is expanding rapidly and the populations of European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) are in decline, it is important to investigate this risk further to understand the potential threat which some robotic lawn mowers may pose to hedgehogs. We tested 19 models of robotic lawn mowers in collision with hedgehog cadavers to measure their effect on hedgehogs. Our results showed that some models of robotic lawn mowers may injure hedgehogs, whereas others are not harmful to them. Apart from one single incidence, all robotic lawn mowers had to physically touch the hedgehog carcasses to detect them. Larger hedgehog cadavers were less likely to be “injured”, with height being the most influential measure of size. The firmness of the tested hedgehog cadavers (frozen or thawed) did not influence the outcome of the collision tests. Neither the position of the hedgehog cadavers nor the selected technical features of the lawn mowers affected the probability of injury. Based on the results, we designed a standardised safety test to measure the effect of a specific model of robotic lawn mower on hedgehogs.

Keywords

• European hedgehog
• <i>Erinaceus europaeus</i>
• robotic lawn mowers
• wildlife conservation
• safety tests
• garden technology