Badger | Facts & Information

The Badger (Mustelidae) is an animal wonderfully adapted to the arid-desert environment. Mellivora capensis, its name from Zoological treatises translates as"the honey eater of the head area".

South Africans know him under the afrikaans name of ratel, and zoologists around the world have decided to call him an aggressive african Badger. It's also called Badger.

Badger Feed

Aggressive Badgers are the Restless demons of the desert, as Arab folklore reminds. Day or night, it does not matter, the activity of the little criminal begins as soon as he wakes up.

From that moment on, he is possessed by a grinding hunger. Its smell is highly developed, being its main weapon in its endless wanderings after prey. There is no greater misfortune for the unfortunate victims than having a rat on their trail.

This is because the mini-beast is more tenacious than a bullterrier and will sooner or later feast on the unlucky Beast. It has a very large list of dishes even for a predatory animal, with researchers discovering more than 60 species of animals that fall prey to it.

The basis is made by reptiles and mammals. Otherwise, under its fangs bleed regardless, mice, gerbils, porcupines, rabbits, ferrets, fox cubs, Jackal, desert cat and even calves of large antelopes such as kudu or wildebeest.

The eggs and chickens of birds are other delicacies with which the Ratel feasts, because the small bundle of muscles with fangs and claws is a skilful climber. If he discovered a chicken farm, then the Badger goes into ecstasy! I'm sure he'll find a way in…

If not, he'll make one.

Badger Appearance

The Badger is 60 to 80 cm long and the tail is 15 to 20 cm. It is easy to recognize due to the stocky appearance, the elongated snout and, especially, the whitish stripes that go from the snout to the tail.

However, the pattern of the coat is quite variable. He has amazing intelligence and remarkable courage. Sexual dimorphism is not obvious.

Puppies are no different from adults, except in size. The Badger lives 15 years. He grunts and puffs when attacked, cries when caught - similar to the rabbit.

Badger Behavior

The Badger is a famous fighter, having stronger canines than a rottweiler. He was thrown into fights with bull terriers and other guard dogs, the latter having no great chance of survival.

The Badger is a hell of an animal, an inborn fighter who attacks almost any animal. There's plenty of evidence that snakes attack without fear.

Unlike other animals and especially the Fox, the Badger is a particularly clean animal. The complex Burrows, located even 2 meters below the ground, with galleries 7-8 m long, have separate rooms for living, for supplies and for excrement, the latter being periodically clogged and replaced with new ones.

The Badger's Mania for cleaning is sometimes used by the Fox who, in order to get a new lair without effort, "eases" several times at the entrance of the Badger's lair, making him move (of course, if he is not caught "in the act"). Such occurrences have been observed many times by both forest people and naturalists.

In fact, the mere installation of a Fox nearby causes the Badger to move, which does not bear the heavy stench that appears in the area of a Fox shelter.

Badger Breeding

Once the female has entered the heat, the Badgers ' courtship and sexual behavior enter a new dimension of violence. First of all, males who feel the hormonal changes of females, end up waging fierce battles for access to the irresistible nurtures of the black and white beauty.

After the rival males have been beaten and driven away by the local bad-boy, he grabs his chosen heart by the neck to carry it, literally, into a burrow previously dug for mating. There are wild sex parties where the female is forced to satisfy the desires of the punk.

During the period when the two have violent sex, any other Badger, be it female or male who passes by the lair, is savagely attacked and driven away by the two "slums" of the desert.

He and she often stand with their heads removed from their burrow to observe other Badgers who will invariably be attacked. The scandalous cohabitation period ends after only 4 days. Now, the female remains in the burrow while the male relentlessly roams the surroundings to spread his genetic material.

After a gestation period that spans 153-162 days, the female gives birth, at the shelter of the burrow, a single cub, rarely two. The Cubs are nothing but smaller replicas of the adults, similar in color and with the same endless dose of guts at the carrier.

Pup apprenticeship lasts 14 months, record period among carnivorous mammals solitare.In all this time the Junior must learn to hunt on his own and especially to show aggression towards any animal, according to the good tradition of the family! When they are young, their mother wears them in her mouth when she goes out for hunting expeditions.

Once the baby has caught up, it keeps on following its mother to learn the secrets of survival in a harsh and hostile environment.

In addition to hunting techniques, the little rat must learn the art of instantly digging a burrow to provide protection when the sun is too strong for its still delicate epidermis.

Another danger that the mother with cubs must take into account is that of solitary males who are used to killing and eating any unguarded chicks.