The badger is a carnivorous mammal of the genus badger of the subfamily Mustelidae badger,[10]Also known as 猹, badger, badger eight dogs.[11]It is strong and wedge-shaped.The coarse coat on the back and side of the body is composed of long and hard needle hair and thin short undercoat, which is usually brownish gray. The coat on both sides is lighter than that on the back, and the coat on the abdomen is short and fine;The tail hair is thick and long, with the same color as the back hair;There are three striking white and brown longitudinal stripes on the face, the middle one from the kiss to the forehead, and two dark brown stripes between the three white longitudinal stripes bend upward;The back of ear is black brown, and the ear margin is white;The throat, neck, chest, abdomen and limbs are black.Small head, flexible nose, small eyes and ears.The neck is thick and short.The limbs are short and thick, and the tail is short and stick shaped.[10]
There are 4 species of badgers, namely Asian badger, European badger, Japanese badger and South West Asian badger.It is distributed in Eurasia and some islands.[10]They can be seen in Northeast, Northwest, South, Central and South China.It lives in forests, hillsides, bushes, fields, wasteland, canals, river valleys and streams.[12]Strong claw, good at digging earth, and living in the cave. The hole can be tens of feet long, and there are tunnels connecting them.Activities at dusk or at night are more violent.It is omnivorous and feeds on plant roots, earthworms, insects, frogs, mice and animal carcasses.In autumn, it is rich in subcutaneous fat, and in winter, it goes into caves to hibernate.Every spring, 3-4 babies are born each time.[13]
In 2000, the badger was included in the List of Terrestrial Wild Animals under National Protection that are Beneficial or of Important Economic and Scientific Research Value;It was listed in the Red List of Vertebrates in China (level: near danger).[14][15-16]
The badger is a larger species in the Mustelidae family. It weighs about 5-10kg, the larger one is up to 15kg, and the body length is between 500-700mm. It has a fat body, a long snout, a thick and blunt nose end, a soft bone nose pad, hair between the nose pad and the upper lip, a short round ear shell, and small eyes.The neck is thick and short, the limbs are short and strong, the toes of the front and rear feet have thick and long black brown claws, the claws of the front foot are longer than those of the rear foot, and the tail is short.anusThere is a gland sac nearby, which can secrete smelly liquid.[3]
Badger
The back of the badger is brown and mixed with white or cream yellow, and thick and hard needle hairs are covered from the top to the tail. 3/4 of the back needle hairs are gray white or white at the base, black brown or light black brown at the middle, and white or cream at the tip.The dark brown part of the body side needle hair obviously decreases, while the white or cream yellow tips gradually increase. Some individual needle hair dark brown gradually disappears, almost showing milk white.The fluff is white or grayish white.The needle hairs on the head are short, about 1/4 of the needle hairs on the back of the body.On both sides of the face, from the corner of the mouth through the ear base to the back of the head, there is a white or cream yellow longitudinal line, and the middle one from the mouth to the forehead. Among the three longitudinal lines, there are two black brown longitudinal lines alternating, extending backward from both sides of the mouth, passing through the eyes to the head, and connecting with the dark area of the neck back.The back and back edge of the ear are dark brown, the upper edge of the ear is white or cream yellow, and the inner edge of the ear is cream yellow.frommandibleUntil the tail base and the inner side of the limbs are dark brown or light brown.The tail back is the same color as the body back, but the white or cream yellow hair tips increase slightly.[3]
BadgerskullThe skull is narrow, long and high.Sagittal ridgeDeveloped, the front end extends to both sides at the frontal bone seam.The herringbone ridge is prominent, and the junction with the sagittal ridge is beyond the position of the foramen magnum.Posterior orbital process andmaxillaryMolarsThe trailing edge of the,ZygomaticThe bow is strong,palatine boneThe uncinate process of the pterygoid bone extends backward to the level of the articular fossa and is almost connected with the auditory vesicle.The auditory vesicle is flat and triangular, and the auditory canal is short.The bottom edge of the mandible is relatively straight, and the joint socket isDentitionAlmost in the same straight line.[3]
BadgerTooth type=34。upperIncisorIt is arranged slightly in an arc,Canine toothConical, 3 premolar teeth,Cracked toothIt is triangular, with a lowTooth tipThere are two small tooth tips on the top of the inner side.The first molar is wide and rectangular, the outer edge is shorter than the inner edge, there are developed anterior and posterior cusps on the outer side, and a posterior process on the inner side, which forms the posterior external angle of the tooth. The central part consists of three small tooth cusps, forming a longitudinal low ridge, and there is a deep groove between the inner edge and the low ridge.The mandibular canine teeth are long and inclined outwards,CrownBending backward, the length of the split tooth is more than three times of the width, and there are developed lower premolars, lower anterior cusps and lower posterior cusps, but the lower posterior cusps are not on the same line with the lower premolars, but on the back inner side. The rear edge is concave like a basin, and the edge is composed of two outer cusps and three inner cusps. The second molar is small and round.[3]
Distinction of recent species
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Badger
Ferret badger
In the weasel family, it is a relatively large species, weighing about 5-10 kg, up to 15 kg, and 500-700 mm in length.
Weight 1-1.5 kg, body length 315-417 mm.
The back of the badger is brown and mixed with white or cream yellow, and thick and hard needle hairs are covered from the top to the tail. 3/4 of the back needle hairs are gray white or white at the base, black brown or light black brown at the middle, and white or cream at the tip.
The fur color of ferret badger varies greatly, with light grayish brown or yellowish grayish brown, dark purple gray to brownish brown on the back of body and outside of limbs, and the color of head and neck is darker than the back of body;There is a continuous white or milky longitudinal line from the back of the head to the back of the spine.
Badger
Ferret badger
Habitat environment
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The badger lives in forests, hillside bushes, fields, graves, dunes and grass, lakes, rivers and streams and other environments.[4]
Life habits
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The activities of badgers are most popular in spring and autumn, generally starting from 8:00 to 9:00 at nightdawnBack to the hole around 4:00.When going out of the hole, try to stretch out the hole slowly and peep around. If there is no sound trace, then go out slowly. It walks very fast in the field. When it comes back to the hole, it walks slowly. Before entering the hole, it first rests slightly at the hole and cleans its head and claws before entering the hole.After leaving the cave, if sound traces are found, they will not return to the original cave temporarily, but move to a temporary cave to live.The range of activity is small and fixed, about 4-6 miles, and the round trip is along a certain path.[3]
The badger has the habit of hibernation. It digs holes and lives there. The tunnels are several meters to more than ten meters long, with crisscross branches.The Winter Cave is a complex cave that has lived for many years. It is renovated and excavated every year. There are 2-3 entrances and exits. There are main roads, side roads and blind ends inside. The walls of the main road are smooth and tidy, without sundries and feces. The end of the main road is built with hay, branches and leaves.In spring and autumnHillockTemporary caves will be built at the places where the shrubs are located. They will enter the cave for rest during the day and come out for food at night. These caves are short and straight, with rough tunnels, small nests, and thin grass mats. There is only one exit.The nest is about 3-5 m away from the entrance, with a diameter of 40-60 cm. There is a cave where badgers live. The entrance is smooth, the soil is loose, and there are footprints left on it. The loose soil extends as far as about 20 m. There are oval cesspits on both sides of the end of the loose soil.[3]
The badger is ferocious, but does not attack livestock and people actively. When being pressed by people or hounds, it often makes a short sound of "feeding, feeding", and can stand up to fight back with sharp claws and canine teeth.[3]
The badger is omnivorous, with roots, stems, fruits, frogs, earthworms, small fish, sand lizards, insects (larvae andpupa）And small mammals. They like to eat the food left by wolves in the grasslandmature periodDamage newly sown seeds and soon to mature corn, peanuts, potatoes, sweet potatoes, beans and melons.[3]
Distribution range
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Distributed in Afghanistan, Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, China, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iran (Islamic Republic of), Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, MacedoniaMoldova, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, the United Kingdom.[2]
China is distributed from Inner Mongolia, Northeast, North China to Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Yunnan, Sichuan, Hubei, Shaanxi, Guizhou, Gansu and other provinces.[5]
Distribution range
Reproductive mode
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The badger breeds once a year. From September to October, the male and female chase each other for mating. From April to May of the next year, they give birth to 2-5 pups. The pups open their eyes one month later. From June to July, the pups follow the mother animals for activities and foraging. In autumn, the pups live independently from the mother animal camp and become sexually mature three years later.Femalepapilla3 pairs, the first pair is close to the chest, each pair of nipples is 75mm apart, and filled with milk.In addition to the white head, the whole body of the cub is covered with gray white fluff, and the back and limbs are slightly black, often making a "squeak, squeak" sound.[3]
Included《World Conservation Union》(IUCN) 2008 Red List of Endangered Species ver 3.1 - Not at Risk (LC).[2]
On September 30, 2020, the State Forestry and Grass Administration issued the Notice on Regulating the Scope of Classified Management of Fasting Wild Animals on its official website. For 19 kinds of wild animals, such as badgers, the Notice stipulates that breeding activities for food purposes are prohibited, but it is allowed to be used for non edible purposes, such as medicine, display, scientific research, etc.In addition, the Notice also requires the competent department of forest and grass for these 19 wild animals to work with relevant departments to formulate management measures and breeding technical specifications, strengthen policy guidance and services, strengthen daily supervision and management, and strictly implement the requirements related to epidemic prevention and quarantine.[7-8]
In December 2023, it was selected into the List of Key Protected Terrestrial Wildlife in Yunnan Province formulated by the Forestry and Grassland Bureau of Yunnan Province.[17]
It has been listed in the List of Terrestrial Wildlife with Important Ecological, Scientific and Social Values.[18]
Population status
The population distribution is not scattered.This species is very common in Russia, with 30000 individuals recorded in 1999.The survey in 2006 showed that this species in Europepopulation densityCompared with the previous decades, it has increased. In Finland, it is distributed near the northern border, with a low density of about 2-2.5 birds/10km2.Its overall quantity tends to be stable.[2]
Species discovery
In July 2024, the good news came from Lianhuashan National Nature Reserve. When the staff of Badu Conservation Station were sorting out the infrared camera monitoring data, they were surprised to find three precious images that clearly recorded the national "three haves" - badgers.[19]
Species value
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The captive badger is one of the main fur animals.Badger andsand badgerThe trade name of badger fur is generally called badger fur.The quality of fur in winter is the best, with rich quilts and dense velvet.Badger skin can be used to make fur coats, mattresses, collars, etc.The plucked needle hairs are flexible and wear-resistant, and can be used to make brushes and advanced brushes.[5]
