Tenkasi is asking students to watch out for the Madras hedgehog too
A school program that started with golden jackals is expanding to the Madras hedgehog after villagers reported sightings.
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A school program in Tenkasi district is widening from golden jackals to the Madras hedgehog. The Hindu reported on October 22, 2026, that District Forest Officer R. Rajmohan is expanding Golden Jackal Ambassadors, which began in local schools and colleges last November.
Rajmohan said the jackal work had increased the number of animals people reported, because students and neighbors sent alerts when they saw hunting. The same idea is now aimed at the Madras hedgehog, known locally as mulleli. A survey of 867 people in 38 villages collected sightings, and 53 percent of those reports came during the monsoon. The next step he described is a "forest guard brother or sister" in every school and college.
He also said the hedgehogs are still losing habitat, getting hit on roads, and being taken from the wild. The announcement is an expansion of an awareness program. It is not a census of hedgehogs, and it does not say those threats have stopped.
For the classroom
In Tenkasi, in Tamil Nadu, India, students are being asked to look out for the Madras hedgehog, also called mulleli. Golden Jackal Ambassadors began in schools and colleges last November. District Forest Officer R. Rajmohan told The Hindu the program is now expanding to the hedgehog. A survey of 867 people in 38 villages collected sightings, and 53 percent of them came in the monsoon. The next idea is a forest-guard partner in every school and college. The program teaches people to notice the animal and leave it alone. It is not a count of hedgehogs saved.
- Why would a forest officer ask students, and not only scientists, to watch for an animal?
- What could a class do if someone found a wild animal near school?
- Why might more animals be seen in the rainy season?
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