The Honolulu Zoo announced it recently received a female African pygmy hedgehog, named Petunia, through the Hawai‘i State Department of Agriculture’s amnesty program.

“We welcome having a hedgehog in our zoo so keiki will be able to see what it looks like since they are not found in Hawai‘i,” said Linda Santos, zoo director, noting Petunia will be housed on exhibit in the Keiki Zoo.

African pygmy hedgehogs, native to that continent and also known as four-toed hedgehogs, are smaller than the native European hedgehog; grow to about 8” long (about the size of a guinea pig), weigh between one to two pounds and are commonly bred and sold as pets in the U.S. mainland and abroad, the announcement said.

However, it added, hedgehogs are illegal to own as pets in Hawaii as they could threaten native species if released into the wild.

African hedgehogs’ bodies are covered with approximately 6,000 short quills used to defend themselves: when they are calm, the spines lie flat against their back and sides, but when threatened, they will roll into a ball with their spines spiking outward for protection.

Contrary to myth, while hedgehogs can control the orientation of their spines, they cannot shoot them at predators.

The shy, slow-moving lumbering omnivore got its name in Britain, where it frequents hedgerows and other bushes rooting for its prey — insects, worms, centipedes, scorpions, snails, mice, frogs, and small toads and snakes — as well as fruits and vegetables.

Native hedgehogs have been on the decline in Britain after the loss of their habitat due to human encroachment; other hedgehog species are native to Asia and New Zealand.

A study by Polish animal researchers published in June in the journal “Animals” reports that wild and domesticated hedgehogs can carry, and expose humans as well as other animals to, salmonella and other bacterial, viral, and fungal pathogens through their feces.

For more information, visit ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8230866.