Indian hedgehog
Paraechinus micropus (Blyth, 1846)
The Indian hedgehog (Paraechinus micropus) is a species in the family Erinaceidae, order Eulipotyphla. Recorded adults weigh about 171 g and live up to 3.74 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.
Quick facts about the Indian hedgehog
- Weight
- 171 gsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- 3.74 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Carnivoresrc for Diet
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- Not recorded
- Gestation
- 35 days – 39 dayssrc for Gestation
- Young per litter or clutch
- 3.57src for Young per litter or clutch
- Age at maturity
- 10 monthssrc for Age at maturity
- Litters or clutches a year
- 1src for Litters or clutches a year
- Active
- At night (nocturnal)src for Active
- Lifestyle
- Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Where does the Indian hedgehog live?
Not recorded
What is the Indian hedgehog?
The Indian hedgehog (Paraechinus micropus) is a species of hedgehog native to India and Pakistan. It mainly lives in sandy desert areas but can be found in other environments.
From the Wikipedia article “Indian hedgehog” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Indian_hedgehog&oldid=1314791433), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the Indian hedgehog endangered?
The Indian hedgehog is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species.
How is the Indian hedgehog classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classMammalia
- orderEulipotyphla
- familyErinaceidae
- genusParaechinus
- SpeciesParaechinus micropus (Blyth, 1846)
Synonyms Erinaceus micropus, Erinaceus pictus, Hemiechinus mentalis, Hemiechinus micropus, Paraechinus intermedius, Paraechinus intermedius kutchicus
Other names and names in other languages (14)
- قنفذ هنديArabic
- ježek pestrýCzech
- Indischer IgelGerman
- Erizo de la IndiaSpanish
- intiansiiliFinnish
- શેળોGujarati
- Riccio indianoItalian
- インドハリネズミJapanese
- IndiapiggsvinNorwegian Bokmål
- Indische EgelDutch
- Jeż indyjskiPolish
- piaskojeż indyjskiPolish
- Индийский ёжRussian
- 印度蝟Chinese
Relatives of the Indian hedgehog
Other species in the same genus Paraechinus.
Desert hedgehog
Paraechinus aethiopicus
Brandt's hedgehog
Paraechinus hypomelas
Bare-bellied hedgehog
Paraechinus nudiventris
CompareIndian hedgehog vs Desert hedgehogIndian hedgehog vs Brandt's hedgehogIndian hedgehog vs Bare-bellied hedgehogIndian hedgehog vs Paraechinus amir
Common questions
Answered only where our data holds the answer.
How big is the Indian hedgehog?
An adult Indian hedgehog weighs 171 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.
Is the Indian hedgehog endangered?
The Indian hedgehog is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.
How long does the Indian hedgehog live?
The Indian hedgehog has a recorded lifespan of 3.74 years.
How long is the Indian hedgehog pregnant?
The recorded gestation period is 35 days – 39 days.
What kind of animal is the Indian hedgehog?
The Indian hedgehog (Paraechinus micropus) belongs to the family Erinaceidae in the order Eulipotyphla.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - EltonTraits 1.0: species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals · CC0 1.0 · 1.0
Wilman, H., Belmaker, J., Simpson, J., de la Rosa, C., Rivadeneira, M.M. & Jetz, W. (2014) EltonTraits 1.0: Species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals. Ecology 95: 2027. https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1 - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Indian hedgehog (Paraechinus micropus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/indian-hedgehog
“Indian hedgehog (Paraechinus micropus).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/indian-hedgehog.
@misc{indian_hedgehog_2026,
title = {Indian hedgehog (Paraechinus micropus)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/indian-hedgehog},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}