TRICK or treaters are warned that dumping pumpkins in woodlands is bad for the wildlife, say charity.

The Woodland Trust, the UK’s largest conservation charity has issued an urgent plea not to endanger wildlife by dumping Halloween pumpkins in woodlands, after noticing this trend in recent years.

Paul Bunton, of the Woodland Trust said: "A myth seems to have built up that leaving pumpkins in woods helps wildlife, people think they're doing a good thing by not binning them in landfill and instead leaving them for nature.

"But pumpkin flesh can be dangerous for hedgehogs, attracts colonies of rats and also has a really detrimental effect on woodland soils, plants and fungi.

"We can’t leave dumped pumpkins to rot so we end up with an orange mushy mess to deal with at many of our sites.”

According to the Trust, the pumpkin problem seems to be starting earlier and earlier, with supermarkets selling cheap pumpkins and pumpkin-picking growing in popularity as a family activity in the run-up to Halloween.

The Trust advises making a pumpkin birdfeeder for the garden, making a pumpkin soup, and other tips on repurposing leftover pumpkin on their website.

Trevor Weeks, from East Sussex Wildlife Rescue said: “Hedgehogs are opportunistic eaters and they spend autumn and early winter building up their fat reserves for hibernation

“As a result, hedgehogs can gorge themselves on easily available food like dumped pumpkins.

“Although not toxic to them the fleshy fibrous fruit can cause stomach upsets and diarrhoea as they are not designed to eat large quantities of fruit.

“This can lead to them becoming bloated and dangerously dehydrated which in turn can be fatal. At this time of year, they can’t afford to become ill, or they may not survive the winter hibernation.”