Hedgehogs may be communicating with more than just snuffles, grunts and snorts, according to scientists who have discovered the animal's hearing range.
The creatures hear sounds at a much higher frequency than humans, meaning they could be signalling to each other with noises that we simply cannot hear.
The discovery could be a "game-changer" for the animal which is in decline in the UK and Europe, according to Dr Sophie Rasmussen at the University of Oxford.
It could help scientists work out how to protect the animals from stressful noises when in rescue centres, or develop sound repellants to deter hedgehogs from going near machines that can kill them, such as cars, lawnmowers or strimmers.
"I wanted to investigate whether it would be possible to make targeted sound repellers for hedgehogs, because they are declining all over Europe. So we set out to measure the hearing of the European hedgehog for the first time, " says Rasmussen.
