Badgers

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Badgers are members of the Mustelidae family, along with stoats, weasels, polecats, martens and otters. Globally there are 11 species of badger grouped into three sub-families. Britain is home to only a single species: the European badger (Meles meles).

Species

European badger

Meles meles

Badgers are medium-sized carnivores belonging to the mustelid family. In Britain they're widely distributed & frequently found living in social groups called clans.

Questions

Do foxes & badgers bury their dead?

This behaviour has been observed in both species. In foxes it's probably caching food. In badgers the reason is unknown, although cleanliness of the sett seems likely.

Is it okay for me to feed wildlife?

Generally speaking, feeding appropriate food in appropriate quantities is fine. There can, however, be some unforeseen consequences to supplementary feeding.

What is hibernation?

Hibernation is more than a winter sleep. It's a complete physiological readjustment.

Why do badgers have striped faces?

The high-contrast pattern serves as a warning to potential predators that the owner is not to be messed with.

Why help your siblings when you could be starting your own family?

Siblings are genetically related and helping to ensure a brother or sister survives the first perilous months increases the chances some of your genes will make it into future generations.

Bibliography

Badger - by Daniel Heath Justice
Reakton Books -- 2015 -- ISBN: 978-1780233369

Badger - by Timothy J. Roper
Collins New Naturalist -- 2010 -- ISBN: 978-0007339778

Badger Behaviour Conservation and Rehabilitation - by George E. Pearce
Pelagic Publishing -- 2011 -- ISBN: 978-1907807046

Badgerlands - by Patrick Barkham
Granta -- 2014 -- ISBN: 978-1847085054

Badgers - by Michael Clark
Whittet Books -- 2001 -- ISBN: 978-1873580998

Badgers - by Mairi Cooper & John Ralstow
Scottish Natural Heritage & British Geological Society Booklets -- 1997 -- ISBN: 978-1853972546

Badgers - Secrets of the Sett - by Natural World
BBC Worldwide Ltd. -- 2008 -- ISBN: N/A

Badgers of Yorkshire & Humberside - by Adrian Middleton & Richard Paget
H. Morley & Sons -- 1974 -- ISBN: 978-0900657283

Sett on the Heath - by RMG Wildlife
RMG Wildlife -- 2008 -- ISBN: N/A

That Mad Badger - by Molly Burkett
Tandem Publishing -- 1974 -- ISBN: 978-0426111566

The Badger - by Thomas J. Hayden (ed)
Royal Irish Academy -- 1993 -- ISBN: 978-1874045144

The Badger (2nd Edition) - by Michael Woods
The Mammal Society -- 2010 -- ISBN: 978-0906282700

The Badger Man: Memoirs of a Biologist - by Earnest Neal
Providence Press -- 1994 -- ISBN: 0-903803-28-3

The Natural History of Badgers - by Ernest Neal
Christopher Helm Publishers -- 1986 -- ISBN: 978-0709918325

The Social Badger - by Hans Kruuk
Oxford University Press -- 1989 -- ISBN: 978-0198587033

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