One of the UK’s driest Spring’s on record is killing thousands of wild animals, a charity has warned.

Simon Cowell MBE, from the Leatherhead-based Wildlife Aid Foundation, says that the prolonged hot, dry weather and the growing problem of forest fires could wipe out wildlife across the South East.

He said: "This drought is getting more serious by the day.

“We have had eight weeks of heat, with barely a drop of rain in that whole time, and we are seeing the consequences of this in the growing number of malnourished and dehydrated baby animals that are brought into our Leatherhead wildlife hospital.

"Very young animals don't know how to find water when it's scarce.

“Across the region they are dying in their thousands. The very least people can do is to keep an eye open for orphaned wildlife and report any incidents to us here at the Wildlife Aid Foundation. I would also encourage people to put out shallow dishes of water in their gardens, as this would be a huge help for small animals such as hedgehogs."

The founder of the Wildlife Aid Foundation is also concerned by the recent woodland fires near Bracknell, Berkshire, which were visible from the Epsom Downs.

He added: "The fires in Berkshire and elsewhere are nothing like the scale of devastation that we saw in Australia, but in a small country like England where we have relatively small pockets of countryside - unlike Australia's vast open spaces - the effect of forest fires on our wildlife can be just as far-reaching.”

Firefighters from Epsom and Ewell have been called out to to help neighbouring teams in both Berkshire and South Ascot with large-scale forest fires requring at least 20 engines from across the South East.

A spokesman warned that conditions are "tinder dry" after only one day of rain over the last month.

He said: "Be careful when disposing of rubbish and be aware when extinguishing cigarettes.

"The land is very dry and in some cases the peat beneath the woodland foliage can carry on burning."