A badger is a stout carnivore known for its burrowing abilities. Most badgers belong to the weasel family (Mustelidae). They are nocturnal animals characterized by anal scent glands, powerful jaws, and heavy claws on their forefeet used for digging. Badgers are classified into six genera and differ in size, habitat, and coloration. The American badger (Taxidea taxus) is found in North America and primarily eats rodents. Old World badger species are omnivorous. The European badger (Meles meles) is a social species that lives in groups and consumes earthworms, insects, fruits, and nuts. Stink badgers, like the Malayan stink badger, have been reclassified into the skunk family due to their ability to spray a strong-smelling fluid.

What does a badger look like?

Badgers are stout carnivores known for their burrowing skills. While species vary, they share nocturnal habits, anal scent glands, powerful jaws, and heavy claws on their forefeet used for digging. The American badger has a muscular, short-necked body, a broad, flat head, and short legs and tail. Its coat is grayish with dark face and feet and a white stripe from nose to back. The European badger is grayish with black-and-white facial stripes. Ferret badgers are brownish to blackish-gray, with white markings on the face, throat, and sometimes the back. Hog badgers are gray to black, with a black-and-white-striped head pattern and white throat, ears, and tail. Stink badgers are brown to black with white on the head, sometimes with a stripe on the back.

Where do badgers live?

Badgers, known for their digging skills, are stout carnivores in the weasel family Mustelidae . They live in various parts of the world. The American badger ( Taxidea taxus ) inhabits open, dry areas of western North America. The European badger ( Meles meles ) is found in Europe, while the Asian badger ( Meles leucurus ) and Japanese badger ( Meles anakuma ) are other species in the genus Meles . Ferret badgers ( Melogale ) live in grasslands and forests from northeast India to central China and Southeast Asia. The hog badger ( Arctonyx collaris ) occupies lowland and mountainous regions, with a similar range to ferret badgers. Stink badgers ( Mydaus javanensis ) live on islands of Southeast Asia, while the Palawan stink badger ( M. marchei ) is native to the Philippines.

Badgers are carnivores known for their burrowing abilities. While the American badger primarily eats rodents, such as ground squirrels, pocket gophers, mice, and voles, they will also consume insects, reptiles, and the eggs of ground-nesting birds. Old World badger species are omnivorous. The European badger eats earthworms, insects, small mammals, birds and their eggs, fruits, and nuts. Ferret badgers consume insects, worms, small birds, rodents, and fruits. Hog badgers eat earthworms, invertebrates, fruits, and small mammals.

How do badgers build and use their homes, called setts?

Badgers, known for their burrowing skills, construct underground dens called setts using their powerful jaws and heavy claws on their forefeet. The European badger (Meles meles) lives in social groups within extensive sett networks, while the American badger (Taxidea taxus) typically spends the day in a burrow, often one dug the night before.

What are some ways badgers protect themselves from predators?

Badgers have several ways to protect themselves from predators. Their stout bodies, powerful jaws, and heavy claws are well-suited for digging and defense. When threatened, they can quickly dig underground to escape danger. They also possess anal scent glands, which can produce a strong, offensive odor to deter predators, similar to skunks. Adult European badgers have few natural predators. When faced with danger, badgers may exhibit avoidance behaviors such as fleeing or hiding.

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Introduction References & Edit History Related Topics

Images

American badger (Taxidea taxus) standing on dirt near its den, with a grassy background in Northern Minnesota.

European badger (Meles meles) with black and white striped face and gray fur sits in green grass in the United Kingdom.

A female American badger with two kits stands on a dirt mound near their den, surrounded by grass and shrubs at Yellowstone National Park.

At a Glance

badger summary

Quick Facts

Related Topics:: ratel; American badger; hog badger; stink badger; ferret badger

On the Web:: World Animal Rescue Network - Badger (Oct. 17, 2026)

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Top Questions

What is a badger?
A badger is a stout carnivore known for its burrowing abilities. Most badgers belong to the weasel family (Mustelidae). They are nocturnal animals characterized by anal scent glands, powerful jaws, and heavy claws on their forefeet used for digging.

Badgers are classified into six genera and differ in size, habitat, and coloration. The American badger (Taxidea taxus) is found in North America and primarily eats rodents. Old World badger species are omnivorous. The European badger (Meles meles) is a social species that lives in groups and consumes earthworms, insects, fruits, and nuts. Stink badgers, like the Malayan stink badger, have been reclassified into the skunk family due to their ability to spray a strong-smelling fluid.
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1. list of mustelids: weasel subfamily (Mustelinae)
2. badger
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What does a badger look like?
Badgers are stout carnivores known for their burrowing skills. While species vary, they share nocturnal habits, anal scent glands, powerful jaws, and heavy claws on their forefeet used for digging.

The American badger has a muscular, short-necked body, a broad, flat head, and short legs and tail. Its coat is grayish with dark face and feet and a white stripe from nose to back. The European badger is grayish with black-and-white facial stripes. Ferret badgers are brownish to blackish-gray, with white markings on the face, throat, and sometimes the back. Hog badgers are gray to black, with a black-and-white-striped head pattern and white throat, ears, and tail. Stink badgers are brown to black with white on the head, sometimes with a stripe on the back.
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Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Where do badgers live?
Badgers, known for their digging skills, are stout carnivores in the weasel family Mustelidae. They live in various parts of the world. The American badger (Taxidea taxus) inhabits open, dry areas of western North America.

The European badger (Meles meles) is found in Europe, while the Asian badger (Meles leucurus) and Japanese badger (Meles anakuma) are other species in the genus Meles. Ferret badgers (Melogale) live in grasslands and forests from northeast India to central China and Southeast Asia. The hog badger (Arctonyx collaris) occupies lowland and mountainous regions, with a similar range to ferret badgers. Stink badgers (Mydaus javanensis) live on islands of Southeast Asia, while the Palawan stink badger (M. marchei) is native to the Philippines.
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1. badger
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What do badgers eat?
Badgers are carnivores known for their burrowing abilities. While the American badger primarily eats rodents, such as ground squirrels, pocket gophers, mice, and voles, they will also consume insects, reptiles, and the eggs of ground-nesting birds. Old World badger species are omnivorous. The European badger eats earthworms, insects, small mammals, birds and their eggs, fruits, and nuts. Ferret badgers consume insects, worms, small birds, rodents, and fruits. Hog badgers eat earthworms, invertebrates, fruits, and small mammals.
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1. omnivore
2. badger
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How do badgers build and use their homes, called setts?
Badgers, known for their burrowing skills, construct underground dens called setts using their powerful jaws and heavy claws on their forefeet.

The European badger (Meles meles) lives in social groups within extensive sett networks, while the American badger (Taxidea taxus) typically spends the day in a burrow, often one dug the night before.
1 Britannica Source
1. badger
Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
What are some ways badgers protect themselves from predators?
Badgers have several ways to protect themselves from predators. Their stout bodies, powerful jaws, and heavy claws are well-suited for digging and defense. When threatened, they can quickly dig underground to escape danger. They also possess anal scent glands, which can produce a strong, offensive odor to deter predators, similar to skunks. Adult European badgers have few natural predators. When faced with danger, badgers may exhibit avoidance behaviors such as fleeing or hiding.
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Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

badger, common name for any of several stout carnivores, most of them members of the weasel family (Mustelidae), that are found in various parts of the world and are known for their burrowing ability. The species differ in size, habitat, and coloration, but all are nocturnal and possess anal scent glands, powerful jaws, and large, heavy claws on their forefeet, which are used to dig for food and construct underground dens. The American badger (Taxidea taxus) feeds mostly on rodents, but Old World species are omnivorous. Badgers are classified into six genera. Some, especially the American badger, are hunted for their pelts.

The American badger, the only New World species, is usually found in open, dry country of western North America. Muscular, short-necked, and flat-bodied, it has a broad, flattened head and short legs and tail. The colour of the coat is grayish and grizzled, dark at the face and feet with a white stripe extending from the nose to the back. It is 23 cm (9 inches) tall and 42–76 cm long, excluding the 10–16-cm tail, and it weighs 4–12 kg (9–26 pounds). The American badger is a powerful animal that captures most of its prey by rapid digging. Generally solitary, it feeds mainly on rodents, particularly ground squirrels, pocket gophers, mice, and voles. Other prey include insects, reptiles, and eggs of ground-nesting birds. Mostly nocturnal, American badgers spend the day inside a burrow often dug the night before. Home ranges are from 1 to 10 square km (0.4 to 4 square miles), depending on habitat and food resources. During the winter they sleep underground for long periods. To survive this period of fasting, they accumulate large amounts of body fat during late summer and autumn. Mating occurs during this time, but implantation of the zygote is delayed. Thus, although the young (usually two or three) are born the following spring, true gestation is only six weeks.

The European badger (Meles meles) is omnivorous, consuming earthworms, insects, small mammals, birds and their eggs, and also fruits and nuts. It is grayish, with large black-and-white facial stripes. It is 30 cm tall and 56–81 cm long, excluding the 12–20-cm tail, and weighs 8–10 kg or more. This social species lives in groups within an extensive network of burrows called sets. Adult European badgers have few natural predators. In Europe tuberculosis and starvation are the most important causes of natural mortality, but thousands are killed annually by vehicles. There are two other species in the genus Meles: the Asian badger (Meles leucurus) and the Japanese badger (Meles anakuma).

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Ferret badgers (genus Melogale), also called tree badgers or pahmi, consist of four species: Chinese (M. moschata), Burmese (M. personata), Everett’s (M. everetti), and Javan (M. orientalis). They live in grasslands and forests from northeast India to central China and Southeast Asia where they consume mostly insects, worms, small birds, rodents, and wild fruits. They are brownish to blackish gray, with white markings on the face, throat, and sometimes the back. Smaller than American and European badgers, they average 33–43 cm long, excluding the 12–23-cm tail.

The hog badger (Arctonyx collaris), also called the hog-nosed, or sand, badger, is a pale-clawed species of both lowland and mountainous regions in a range similar to that of ferret badgers. It is gray to black, with a black-and-white-striped head pattern and white throat, ears, and tail. It is 55–70 cm long, excluding the 12–20-cm tail, and weighs 7–14 kg. Hog badgers are nocturnal and find food by rooting. Their diet consists mostly of earthworms and other invertebrates, but they also consume fruits and small mammals.

Stink badgers consist of two species, the Malayan stink badger (Mydaus javanensis), also called the skunk badger or teledu, and the Palawan, or Calamanian, stink badger (M. marchei). The Malayan stink badger is an island dweller of Southeast Asia that usually lives in mountainous areas. It is brown to black with white on the head and sometimes with a stripe on the back. It is 38–51 cm long, excluding the short tail, and weighs 1–4 kg. The Palawan stink badger is a little-known badger from the Philippines on Palawan and neighbouring islands. Its scent is very strong and offensive. Both stink badgers have been reclassified from Mustelidae to the skunk family, Mephitidae. Like skunks, stink badgers have anal glands that produce a strong-smelling fluid that can be sprayed.

For the honey badger (Mellivora capensis), see ratel.

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