The Afghan hedgehog ''(Hemiechinus auritus megalotis)'' is a subspecies of the

long-eared hedgehog The long-eared hedgehog (''Hemiechinus auritus'') is a species of hedgehog native to Central Asian countries and some countries of the Middle East. The long-eared hedgehog lives in burrows that it either makes or finds and is distinguished by it ...

native to

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

and western

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

. It is larger and reddish in colour, but otherwise similar in appearance to the long-eared hedgehog. At 23–28 cm long and 700 to 900 grams of weight, the Afghan hedgehog is roughly the size of the

West European hedgehog The European hedgehog (''Erinaceus europaeus''), also known as the West European hedgehog or common hedgehog, is a hedgehog species native to Europe from Iberia and Italy northwards into Scandinavia and westwards into the British Isles.Harris, S. ...

. Since the Afghan hedgehog occupies mostly mountainous areas, are abundant at 1000 meters, and often found as high as 2500 meters, thus living at the highest elevation among hedgehog species, lower temperatures probably made it evolve larger. It also hibernates for approximately six months. Another adaptation for mountain terrain that this

subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...

possesses long claws on its legs, which are more suitable for climbing. The Afghan hedgehog is common in its

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

. It

prey Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill ...

s on

insect Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs ...

snake Snakes are elongated, Limbless vertebrate, limbless, carnivore, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes . Like all other Squamata, squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping Scale (zoology), scales. Ma ...

s, and

scorpion Scorpions are predatory arachnids of the order Scorpiones. They have eight legs, and are easily recognized by a pair of grasping pincers and a narrow, segmented tail, often carried in a characteristic forward curve over the back and always end ...

s, but also prefers melons,

watermelon Watermelon (''Citrullus lanatus'') is a flowering plant species of the Cucurbitaceae family and the name of its edible fruit. A scrambling and trailing vine-like plant, it is a highly cultivated fruit worldwide, with more than 1,000 varieti ...

s, and berries. Because of its passion for melons, it is often considered a pest. The Afghan hedgehog is also a capable hole-digger, even in rough terrain.

References

Hemiechinus Mammals of Asia Mammals of Pakistan Mammals of Afghanistan Mammals described in 1845 Taxa named by Edward Blyth {{erinaceidae-stub