The European Badger has
to be one of the most charismatic animals in the UK and over the years has
become an icon of wildlife conservation, mainly due to the fact that the
Wildlife Trust's use the badger as their logo. Although resembling a bear, the
badger is actually part of the mustelid family, which includes stoats, otters,
weasels and mink. Originally their English name was 'Brock', the name 'Badger'
comes from the French name 'Le Becheur' which means 'The Digger'.
A dominant boar, strutting his stuff through the woods in search
of food.
Even though virtually
everyone can recognise the Badger's black and white striped face and they are
relatively common due to their protected status, they are still rarely seen. We
are most likely to see them lying dead at the side of the road, these are
normally young inquisitive badgers who are exploring their new surroundings and
have unfortunately wandered into dangerous territory.
The Nature of the
Badger
Badger's are fantastic
to watch and are full of great character, they can be funny, aggressive to one
another and also very tender creature's. They are of course, in the main
nocturnal, but at certain times of the year they will venture out before the
fall of darkness. The best time to see them in daylight is during a couple of
hours before nightfall from spring through to autumn. Badgers do not hibernate
as once thought and they will venture out in winter, but this depends on where
you are in the UK. Here in Cornwall where the climate is relatively mild, they
are active all year round, in the colder north of Britain they may enter a
state of torpid during parts of the winter.
Badgers are omnivores
which means they will eat meat and vegetation - actually, they will eat almost
anything - a bit like us really! Earth worms make up a large part of their diet
- which is why their setts are virtually always in woodland next to good
pasture. With strong jaws and long claws, badgers are excellent foragers and
will wander the woods and pasture in the search of food. Their setts can be
hundreds of years old and are passed down to successive generations. They can
also be fiercely territorial and will attack an intruder from another family
group (often called clans). Each family group can consist of anything up to 12
badgers and quite often; the dominant boar and sow are the only badgers that
will mate and produce up to 5 young.
Two Badger cubs venturing out before nightfall.
Find Yourself A
Badger Sett.
So where can you find a
badger sett? As previously mentioned, setts are normally within woodland very
close to pasture. Before wandering through woodlands in search of badger
sett's, please make sure you are legally allowed to be there, there are also
safety issues to think about - if it isn't public land, legal hunting and
shooting activities could be taking place without your knowledge.
So the best and most
accessible place to find them is in public places such as Country Parks,
Woodland Trust Reserves, Wildlife Trust Reserves and others such as Forestry
Commission woodlands.
I have to mention that
Badgers are a protected species and it is a criminal offence to harm a
badger in any way or interfere with a badger sett - so please stay within
the law and respect the badgers and their habitats. They are wild animals so
please don't overly feed a badger sett with peanuts - if you want a tame
animal, buy a dog. It's important that they stay wild for their own protection.
Feed only as a supplement every now and again to help you see them and to give
badgers a little extra food.
Please also respect the
wider area and think about your actions when on nature reserves - other animals
live there too.
OK, you've found a
badger sett, you now need to know if it is active - time spent watching an
empty sett entrance very is boring, so you need to know if anyone's home. The
first indicator is the sett entrances which are much larger than a rabbit hole
and usually numerous in number, if it is use the hole will be relatively clear
of leaf litter and twigs and will not smell nasty - go on get down on yer knees
and have sniff! If it stinks - a fox is probably living there. Badgers on the
whole are pretty clean animals and do not regularly go to the toilet in their
sett - they have little toilet pits a short distance away, I've often seen the
first badger out of the sett run off and do a poo at the designated spot before
even thinking about eating.
At an entrance to the sett.
Watching
Badgers
Time to see some
badgers! Get to the sett at least a couple of hours before dark, put a few
peanuts out around the sett entrance - I tend to scatter mine rather than
leaving them in piles so that they have to forage for them. Place yourself at
least 10 metre's from a sett entrance and sit down (take a sit mat or small
chair), or alternatively stand in front of a tree. The crucial thing is to be
down wind and silent. The badgers life depends on having excellent scent and
hearing ability, it has been said by experts that badgers can smell over 400
times our capacity. Sight is not a big decision making sense, they have evolved
with poor eyesight due to the amount of time spent underground and of course
being nocturnal.
Everything is in place,
you, the food and hopefully the badgers will emerge and give you an
unforgettable viewing. I watch badgers at least once a month and never get
bored of it - I've even taken the kids. I am a big believer in involving my
children as much as possible, this gives them a lifelong love of wildlife, it
also teaches them about and to respect the natural world, they get plenty of
fresh air and just think about it - our young people will determine the future
- not us. In terms of badger watching I personally would watch the badgers
first to make sure they get a result on their first visit - saves them getting
bored, and once they have seen them they will want to come back for
more.
Foraging for peanuts
When it's time to leave,
if the leaf litter won't allow you to leave quietly, snap a dead twig, this
normally sends them scurrying for the sett entrance - and boy can they move
when they want to. I think this is a better way than just getting up and
walking off causing a rackett - snap a twig and when the coast is clear,
quietly sneak away and leave them to it.
A
short sequence of badgers emerging from their sett.
