A portrait of a Juvenile badger taken at the British Wildlife Centre in Surrey during feeding time
Badgers are closely related to otters, stoats, weasels, polecats and pine martens. They are largely nocturnal, normally shy, retiring animals that live in social or family groups. A badger's home is called a sett. The sett is an underground home, often with a labyrinth of tunnels involving the excavation of tons of earth. An adult can grow up to 36" long and usually weighs from 22 to 27 lbs. Badger prints are broader than they are long with five toes and five long, non-retractable powerful claws that they use for digging. The sense of smell is the most important of the badgers senses. Badgers forage for food with their snouts constantly sniffing the ground ahead of them. Badgers are omnivorous and will eat a wide variety of foods, although their main diet consists of earthworms, up to 200 per day. Badgers are less active during winter months but they do not hibernate. The mating process involves "delayed implantation". Although females are able to mate any time after the cubs are born the fertilised egg does not implant in the uterus until December. Badger cubs are normally born in February, the number of cubs usually being between one and three. Cubs emerge about May after spending the first 8-10 weeks underground. Badgers are gorgeous! The main enemy of badgers is mankind. Acts of Parliament make it illegal for any person to kill, or injure badgers, (but see below). Note:- Britain's badger setts are regularly monitored by police and volunteers. With its striking black and white striped head, the badger is one of our most instantly recognisable mammals. The rest of the stocky body appears grey, and the legs, throat, neck, chest and belly are black (4). The tail is a whitish colour, but can be darker (4). Males and females are generally similar in appearance, although females tend to be slightly smaller in size
Size: 6144px × 4096px
Location: British Wildlife Centre, surrey
Photo credit: © steven flaherty / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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