Badger

Written by Pookas Kreations

The squat, burrowing badger is plentiful in most temperate forests. Most species are carnivorous, though some eat a variety of meat, insects, and vegetables. The badger possesses a fierceness and natural tenacity, while its stubby legs and wide, seemingly portly stature belie the creature’s actual strength and speed.

While generally friendly, if threatened or otherwise provoked, badgers can become fierce combatants. Once engaged with an opponent, they typically fight until slain. In combat, they fight with their sharp, needle-like teeth and long, curved claws, which they otherwise use for digging.

Basic Information

Biological Traits

The torso is blunt and limbs are short. The front feet are equipped with powerful digging claws. The claws on hind feet are smaller.

Genetics and Reproduction

Beginning at 2 years of age, females mate and give birth to litters of two or three cubs in the spring (March–April). They mate again shortly afterward but delay implantation until the following February.[1] Japanese badgers are more solitary than European badgers; they do not aggregate into social clans, and mates do not form pair bonds. During mating season, the range of a male badger overlaps with those of 2 to 3 females. Badgers with overlapping ranges may communicate by scent marking.

Growth Rate & Stages

Cubs are born in the spring and stay with their mother until the fall or the next spring. In which time she is usually already pregnant with her next litter, so she kicks out the males from the previous one. Females are allowed to stay as long as they help take care of the new litter.

Ecology and Habitats

They are mostly found in temperate forests, although some like to live in scrub or grasslands.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Most are carnivorous, though some eat a variety of meat, insects, and vegetables.

Biological Cycle

If they live in an area where it gets cold in the winter, they will enter a hibernation period. Badgers begin to prepare for winter sleep during late summer by accumulating fat reserves, which reach a peak in October. During this period, the sett is cleaned and the nesting chamber is filled with bedding. Upon retiring to sleep, badgers block their sett entrances with dry leaves and earth. They typically stop leaving their setts once the snow has fallen. In cold climes, badgers retire for their winter sleep from late October to mid-November and emerge from their setts in March and early April. In areas such where winters are less harsh, badgers either forgo winter sleep entirely or spend long periods underground, emerging in mild spells.

Additional Information

Social Structure

Badgers are the very social, forming groups of six adults on average, though larger associations of up to 23 individuals have been recorded. Group size may be related to habitat composition. Under optimal conditions, badger territories can be as small as 30 ha but may be as large as 150 ha in marginal areas.

Badger territories can be identified by the presence of communal latrines and well-worn paths. It is mainly males that are involved in territorial aggression. A hierarchical social system is thought to exist among badgers and large powerful boars seem to assert dominance over smaller males.

They are burrowing animals. However, the dens they construct (called setts) are the most complex and are passed on from generation to generation. The number of exits in one sett can vary from a few to fifty. These setts can be vast, and can sometimes accommodate multiple families. When this happens, each family occupies its own passages and nesting chambers. Some setts may have exits which are only used in times of danger or play.

Badgers dig and collect bedding throughout the year, particularly in autumn and spring. Sett maintenance is usually carried out by subordinate sows and dominant boars. The chambers are frequently lined with bedding, brought in on dry nights, which consists of grass, bracken, straw, leaves, and moss. Up to 30 bundles can be carried to the sett on a single night. European badgers are fastidiously clean animals that regularly clear out and discard old bedding. During the winter, they may take their bedding outside on sunny mornings and retrieve it later in the day. Spring cleaning is connected with the birth of cubs and may occur several times during the summer to prevent parasite levels from building up.

If a badger dies within the sett, its conspecifics will seal off the chamber and dig a new one. Some badgers will drag their dead out of the sett and bury them outside. A sett is almost invariably located near a tree, which is used by badgers for stretching or claw scraping. Badgers defecate in latrines, which are located near the sett and at strategic locations on territorial boundaries or near places with abundant food supplies.

In extreme cases, when there is a lack of suitable burrowing grounds, badgers may move into haystacks in winter. They may share their setts with red foxes or European rabbits. The badgers may provide protection for the rabbits against other predators. The rabbits usually avoid predation by the badgers by inhabiting smaller, hard to reach chambers.

Uses, Products & Exploitation

They are often killed for their fur.

Facial characteristics

They have a long skinny face with a small nose an ears.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

Badgers can be found in any temperate land, they prefer to stay away from water as it floods their tunnels.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Badgers have lowlight vision and scent

The squat, waddling badger trudges forth. Thrusting its flattened nose about the ground, it sniffs incessantly.

Genetic Descendants

• Badgen

Scientific Name

Meles anakuma

Lifespan

15 years

Average Height

10 inches at the shoulder

Average Weight

24 lbs

Average Length

30 inches

Average Physique

Badgers are short, squat and husky.

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

A typical badger has dark brownish-gray fur highlighted with white markings, such as bands or striped masks about the eyes. These markings are distinct and vary by species.