Hedgehogs have become regular garden visitors

Its been a month since I saw a hedgehog in our garden. As I mentioned in the last post, the day following that first sighting I put out the hedgehog box that I built last year and hoped it would take up residence. Since then I have been diligently putting out tasty nutritious hedgehog food every night (dried mealworms and dry meaty cat biscuits) and all mornings bar about one, the food has gone. But what has been eating it has been the big question, with robins, neighbourhood cats and foxes being prime contenders; and you can never discount mice. Robins up surprisingly late hopping round near the food, fox poos found nearby on the lawn, and regular visits by Storm (the 'hunter' cat) to our bird-rich garden, combined with a total lack of further hedgehog sightings has left me pondering and uncertain. One night there were various snufflings and rustlings in the leaf litter that I was pretty confident were made by one or two hedgehogs, but as soon as I shone my torch in the direction of the noise whatever it was hid in the undergrowth. However, last night about 11pm and tonight around 7.30pm hedgehogs have been spotted! Yesterday's sighting was of the back end of a hedgehog tucking into the food I put in the tunnel entrance to the hedgehog house. Tonight as I put out the food, I heard a short squeaky rasp from the other side of the lawn - which I like to think meant 'I'd like it over here please' - and there sure enough was an early-bird hedgehog. Ever obliging i put the food down in front of it. It cowered slightly but did not retreat more than a couple of inches, and soon tucked in as i stepped away and turned off my torch. Is it or another hedgehog living in the box? I suspect not, but something has definitely been checking it out as any loose blockages of dried grass i place in the tunnel have been cleared away. Perhaps a hedgehog has ear-marked the box for hibernation in mid-November. It would be nice if a hedgehog stayed but it doesn't really matter. It must mean there is somewhere even more luxurious to spend winter.