Nature lovers want drivers to give Norfolk's badgers a brake.

They have launched a crowdfunding campaign to raise money to buy warning signs in areas where the iconic creatures live.

The Norfolk Badger Trust has been collecting and collating data on badger road deaths for several years, allowing it to identify road kill 'hot-spots'. It is hoping to raise £1,000 to buy more warning signs, after obtaining a grant to place signs along the B1110 at Swanton Novers.

'This year alone we've had 120 dead badgers,' said its chairman, Will Fitch. 'We want to stop badgers getting hit on the roads.

'Also, from a public safety point of view getting people to slow down at night is a good thing.'

Badgers remain faithful to the trails their ancestors have used for centuries and struggle to adjust when roads are built across them.

Badgers are very robust animals with tough skulls. So being hit by a vehicle is not always immediately fatal, with animals often crawling away to a slow and agonising death.

Hitting one of the creatures can also cause considerable damage to a car, whilst swerving to avoid one could cause a serious accident.

After meetings with local parish councils and discussions with Norfolk County Council's Highways department, it was agreed to have badger warning signs installed for an 18-month trial period.

A grant has helped pay for the trial signs, which have now been installed along a length of the B1110.

The signs are the first of their kind for the county.

The badger trust's gofundme page says: 'Our current campaign for badger road signs to be installed around road kill hotspots in Norfolk is going brilliantly, with three meetings with parish councils so far resulting in all three parishes pledging their support.

'Now what we desperately need is help raising the funds for the installation and upkeep of these signs, which will improve the safety of our roads for badgers, other wildlife.'

To donate, go online to https://www.gofundme.com/give-norfolk-badgers-a-brake.