Before the dog days of 2023, the only mammal I wanted as a pet was a hedgehog. However, every time I got the urge to purchase a captive-bred hedgie, I’d remember that they were nocturnal. Sellers say you can interact with your hedgehog as they awake at dinnertime for some fun before bed. I prefer pets who are diurnal like me. And then I moved to the desert.
Desert Hedgehogs
When I moved to Arizona, up until 2015, it was illegal to own hedgehogs. That was when the Arizona Game and Fish Department removed them from the list of animals considered dangerous. It was believed that the species of hedgehogs sold as pets might survive in the wild within the state and become invasive. (And yet sulcata tortoises, Centrochelys sulcata, are allowed to be sold, and we know they have become invasive in the Sonoran Desert). Officials determined that the species of hedgehog sold in the pet trade, the four-toed or African pygmy hedgehog, Atelerix albiventris, would not survive in the wilds of Arizona, so it wouldn’t be a problem as feared.
I’ve adopted a dog and four horses in the past few years, so I’ve satiated my interest in mammals.
However, I still have a form of hedgehogs in my life – they are growing outside in my yard. Being April, it is time for the local cactus species to begin blooming. While walking Max the dog, I saw a glimpse of pink in my front yard.
Upon examination, I found a hedgehog cactus in bloom, Echinocereus engelmannii, also known as Engelmann’s hedgehog cactus. This is a common cactus in the southwest US, thriving in elevations from sea level to about 7800 feet, including the dry, well-drained Sonoran and Mojave deserts.
As my photos show, this cactus grows in clusters with up to 20 or more stems. Surprisingly, large bright pink flowers bloom in April near the top of the stems. The flowers open during the day for several days.
I’m looking forward to seeing the fruit develop. The fruit is supposedly red and spiny; however, unlike the body of the plant, the spines on the fruit are easily detached. This way, animals are encouraged to eat the fruit and disperse the tiny black seeds.
The cactus protects its stems with thick spines. The spines vary in size, long or stout, and color: white, yellow, brown, and gray.
As we progressed around my yard, I discovered an even more giant hedgehog in the backyard. Over several days, more and more flowers opened.
First day of discovery:
Day three:
I am delighted with the hedgehogs I have living with me these days. Not only are they beautiful and native, but they’re diurnal, too!
