‘Only if they can watch badgers without the badgers knowing they have been watched can observers consider themselves true naturalists.’
from Nature Detective, by Hugh Falkus
It may be useful to write a few words about the practice of badger watching, both to help anyone who feels like following the same path, and also to make some sense of the strange actions I describe in the fieldnotes. For instance, why do I seem to spend so much time sitting in trees?
In theory, badger watching is quite simple. Unlike other animals, which move around within a given territory, badgers have a clearly defined home in the form of their sett. This fixes their position. Add to this the fact that they are nocturnal: they come out as it gets dark. This fixes a time. This means that to watch badgers, all one needs to do is to be at an occupied sett around the time of dusk (with permission, of course), and sooner or later the badgers will put in an appearance.
The key to successful watching is to avoid alerting the badgers to your presence. Most badgers are truly wild. Some become habituated to people, and many will take food from gardens, even under bright lights, but most are wild. Having been persecuted by humans for hundreds of years you cannot blame them for being suspicious. Any hint of your presence is likely to disturb them, and at best you will not see the full range of behaviours that relaxed badgers would show, and at worst you will not see the badgers at all.
The first thing to remember is to approach the sett stealthily. Aim to be there at least an hour or so before dusk. Don’t come crashing in noisily, as the badgers may already be above ground when you arrive. You may scare them now without ever realising it and wonder why you spent the rest of the evening staring at an empty wood.
A badger’s sense of smell is very keen, so you need to make sure that you approach and watch from downwind of the sett, in other words that the wind is blowing from the sett to you and not the other way round. This means that your scent is carried away behind you and not towards the badgers. Similarly, try not to walk over the sett entrances or the main badger paths, as your scent may linger here for quite a while.
One trick I use a lot is to climb up a tree and watch from there. Being above ground means that your scent is carried away rather than along the ground, and you are also well away from any foraging badgers that may stumble upon you. Of course, this technique depends on having climbable trees in the area of the sett, and it isn’t always comfortable. I use an inflatable cushion, which makes sitting for hours on a branch a little more bearable. There’s also the actual climbing of the tree to consider, which can be a bit of an adventure in the dark when you’re cold and wet and laden with gear.
You will need to wear dark, drab clothing that blends in with the background and won’t rustle. Badgers see movement fairly well, so it is important to keep still. It is also best to avoid silhouetting yourself against the skyline, so sitting with your back to a tree is a good idea, and more comfortable too. Don’t get too close to the sett – start by watching from about 30 feet away until you know you can move closer. Bring binoculars if you have them – it is better to sit further away and watch with binoculars than to try and get too close. A 7×50 pair works well in the dim light of dusk, and actually allows you to see more in the half-light than you can with the naked eye.
Wrap up warmly too. It is surprising how cold a summer evening can be, especially when you are not moving around. If you’ve brought a jumper with you, put it on when you arrive, so you won’t disturb the badgers by doing it later.
If you’re lucky, the badgers will come out while it is still light. They’ll come out cautiously; sniffing the air to make sure that it is safe. Keep still. Resist the urge to turn round, point, grab the camera or make any other sudden moves. Let the badger settle down and come out when it’s ready. Sometimes the badgers will emerge and trot off almost immediately to begin feeding. At other times you can see the whole family as they sit around, have a good scratch and generally relax together.
Some people recommend using a torch to illuminate the badgers, but I’ve never done this. I think the advantages are outweighed by the disturbance. In summer the badgers will come out while there is plenty of light, and they’ll usually be gone from the sett by the time it is fully dark. However, you may want to bring a torch with you so you can find your way home. If you’re not used to it, wandering around a wood in the dark can be quite disorientating.
After a while, the badgers will amble off to begin the night’s business of feeding and foraging. Now is the time to leave. But again, try and be as stealthy as possible to avoid disturbing the badgers. In my view, disturbing badgers is unpardonable. When disturbed, badgers are slow to come out and feed, and by interrupting their routine the careless badger watcher is potentially causing them harm. Above all, the welfare of the badgers must come first, so we owe it to them to avoid disturbance as much as possible. If you can’t watch them without alarming them, then don’t watch them at all.
So there you have it. Of course, the practice of badger watching can become more complicated than this. In the posts I go into more detail, so have a look at the fieldnotes for more practical hints and personal experiences, but I hope that I’ve given you the general idea.
Thank you for your interesting information on badgers. I recently have found a sett local to where l live, this is over in a field just by some woodland in Staffordshire, UK.
l often put food down nearby for any passing animal and wondered if the badgers have been eating it too! I put food scraps down including: cheese, seeds and nuts, vegetable peelings, pre-cooked rabbit stew , raw potato, any of my food leftovers (l am mainly vegetarian and all of my food is wholegrain and fresh produce). Whenever l return most of this food has gone.
I’d like to watch the badgers but l am a little wary as they are meant to be agressive and the last thing l want is for them to see me and attack. Do they attack people or am l being over cautious? I would never interfere with them or attempt to disrupt them especially whilst feeding. Should l just leave them well alone to get on with their routine? I suppose if l’m meant to see them then one day l will!
I’d just be interested to hear your comments on this!
Kindest regards to you,
Eve Arnold
Hi there Eve – good to hear from you.
Firstly, I can reassure you that badgers are not at all aggressive. They have immensely powerful jaws, and could bite like hell if they wanted to, but the chances of them ever doing so are very remote. There have been very, very few instances of badgers being aggressive to people, and these have either been with badgers that have been raised with humans (and so lost their natural fear) or injured or trapped badgers that have lashed out in self-defence.
So – don’t worry. The badgers will be far more nervous and afraid of you than you would ever be of them. If they see you and feel threatened they’ll just turn tail and amble off. They certainly wouldn’t attack you just because you disturbed their feeding (I had a cat once that would do this, but that’s another story…).
My advice is to go out and have a look. If they’ve grown used to feeding in a particular spot, then you’ve a good chance of seeing them there. Wrap up warm in some dull-coloured and quiet clothes and sit and wait one evening, perhaps when there’s a full moon if there isn’t any artificial light nearby. When you see a badger I guarantee you’ll enjoy the experience!
Excellent point about not disturbing the immediate vicinity of a sett .
conversely ,
Badgers are fairly adaptable though , & I know of many setts
that are remarkably close to people , they dont seem to have
much fear of humans – good job that we keep a fairly close eye on these locations .
One more point , that maybe useful is to establish the wind direction before choosing an approach – obviously to be stealthy , stay downwind .
Red LED lights dont seem to upset badgers at all – maybe beyond their spectrum ?
I love this blog .
me and my wife used to watch/photograph badgers years and years ago when the children were little and now we see a sett when we go camping in ashbourne and now thats spurned me on to watch a sett about a mile away from here in bolsover its always such an exiting buzz when you first see that black and white face isnt it!
Glad to welcome a fellow watcher!
I agree with you – there is something thrilling and addictive about watching badgers. It seems to grip almost everyone who sees one. I’m glad to hear that you’re still enjoying the experience.
I would love to subsribe to your blog but the link isnt working :(. I want to start photographing Bagers and any tip would be useful.
Hi Jason and welcome!
Have another go at the subscribe link – it works for me. Mind you, feedburner has been a bit wonky since Google took it over.
As for photographing badgers, the only advice I can give you is to first find your badgers and get comfortable watching them, and only then think about the photographs. It can be very distracting trying to cope with badgers and the camera at the same time.
I’m probably not the best to advise you on the actual photography aspect. I’ve only got a (relatively) cheap compact bridge camera that I push to the limits by taking photos in dim light at extreme range. For more expert advice have a look at http://www.badgerpics.org.uk for some good tips, and the photography forum on http://www.wildaboutbritain.co.uk is very helpful.
Do you have any badgers near you that you plan to photograph?
If you’re lucky enough to have badgers near your house, I’ve found that they’ll come right up to it to eat peanuts (they also seem to love the other bird seed I leave out).
We inherited a flood light from the previous owner, and they don’t seem to mind it at all. In fact it seems to render the source of peanuts invisible as I chuck the nuts at them from an open window with no effort to disguise myself (in the dark). The badgers probably think the nuts are dropping from a tree.
I remember the first time I saw a badger going into a little wood nearby, and I was beside myself with joy – little did I think that within a year I’d be chucking peanuts at them snuffling around at a distance of 6 feet every night.
I trust that peanuts aren’t bad for them.
Hi Alison – welcome to the site!
I’m always very jealous of people who have badgers in their garden. To be able to watch them at such close quarters must be great.
You’re right, peanuts are the ‘classic’ badger food, although I’m pretty sure that badgers will eat almost anything. I don’t think that peanuts are bad for them, provided they’re fresh and good quality (peanuts are susceptible to a mould that can make them toxic). The only thing that I would say is that if you’re feeding them a lot – in other words if your food is becoming a significant part of their diet – then you may want to vary it a bit to make sure they’re getting everything they need. Dried dog food is good, providing you put out plenty of water, or you can get proprietary badger food from some places (I suspect this would get expensive if they eat a lot). Johnny Kingdom has a recipe for ‘badger cake’ in his book, but I can’t seem to find it on the internet.
Keep up the badger watching, and we’d be delighted to hear any stories.
All the best
BWM
The peanuts are supposed to be for the birds, which I get with all the other bird food from a good local pet food supplier, so I trust they are good quality and fresh.
I’m hoping that there’s enough natural food to eat around here (we certainly have hundreds of frogs, and although they’re now getting big, there have been loads of baby rabbits if those are badger food, plus piles of apples), and I’ve tried sausages which they went straight past. They ignore the pheasant/dove wheat/corn dispenser and I saw from your site that they like wheat in the fields, so I don’t think they’re hungry, just greedy for treats. The main one seemed to eat all the mixed wild bird food tonight too, though I did hear very crunchy noises, so it might be the hemp seeds that it loves (I must experiment with hemp seed alone).
Tonight there were three for the first time, the third looked like a youngster – a bit smaller, with very black and white markings, but it was nervous, didn’t know how to find the peanuts and didn’t stay. I wonder if this means that we actually have the beginnings of a sett, and not just some outlying badgers. There are certainly a lot of new holes (one beside the remains of a well-munched wasp’s nest).
I also watched the main one drinking from the bird bath for the first time. Now I understand why the water goes down so fast – I thought it was possibly hares or rabbits.
Back to the horrible city tomorrow, so hoping my husband remembers to put out the nightly peanuts till I can get back to the real world.
Hi Alison – it sounds like your badgers really are living the good life! If you’re getting three badgers regularly then I’d say that it’s a good bet that you’ve got a sett nearby, perhaps within a few hundred metres.
The wasp’s nest is a classic badger feeding sign, and they’ll certainly eat baby rabbits if they can catch them. If there’s short grass or pasture nearby then they’ll have a good supply of the earthworms that make up their main diet. I guess the nuts and birdseed is just like a dessert for them.
is the ‘sett’ the den?
Hi there and welcome to another kind of badger fan entirely! Yes, our badgers in the UK live underground. Their hole is called a ‘sett’.
Hi Badgerman, I went out tonight, to see if i could watch them near their set, i went out about 4:30pm, the sun had set and it had started to get dark, I had two Lanterns (electric ones) i lay some Nuts and a few apples down a few meters from the set entrance, and placed one lantern quite close, the other lantern was placed near where i was sitting down (turned on) near the base of a tree where i was. I waited for a good 2 and a half hours but got nothing. I can only hope for the best next time, i left at about 7:00pm trying to be as quiet as possible.
Better luck next time i guess. Do you have any tips for me? What time do they come out? around this time of year, should i be coming earlier, should i not use lanterns? Any response would be much appreciated.
Kristian
Hi Kristian
Firstly, I take my hat off to you for being out watching at the moment. It can’t be easy in this cold weather!
As for the badgers, I’d expect them to be coming out of the sett a couple of hours after dusk, but there are no hard and fast rules. The nights are very long at this time of year so they have plenty of time to forage while it is dark. This means that they don’t have to rush.
The cold weather may affect them too. If the ground is frozen it makes it difficult to catch earthworms, their main food. Badgers don’t seem to mind the cold much themselves, but I suspect that when it is frosty or snowing they are more likely to stay at home.
It sounds like you were doing the right things, providing you were sitting a fair distance away from the sett. The lantern might have scared the badgers, as might the food. Badgers do not like anything new, so even a familiar scent such as an apple, if it is in the wrong place, may frighten them. Perhaps move the lantern away from the sett and keep feeding them for a few days so they get used to the food being there. If the food is disappearing overnight that’s a good sign, although foxes and birds may eat it too.
Keep trying, and let us know how you get on!
Best of luck
BWM
Thanks Badgerman,
Yes i have been feeding them with Nuts, apples even Mangos! i have also noticed something quite funny, the don’t seem to like Satsumas, my guess is that they might be too acidic for them. The ground is quite hard at the moment, but no snow is present. I was about 20ft away from the hole, Maybe next time i will try without the lantern, maybe just a torch, i may bring a friend next time and position him on the western side of the Set (as i was on the eastern side). I usually place the food down at 8:00am in the morning, check it a few hours before sun down to see if any birds, foxes or squirrels have eaten it, then head home and check it again in the morning.
I have seen a badger track quite recently, i just about outlined it on paint! It’s missing it’s 5th Toe though, i couldn’t find that. I think soon, i will place a large amount of food surrounded by sprinkled sand and patted down, that way if a badger eats it, i should be able to see their footprints. Oh and don’t worry i am wrapping up warm at this time of year, many many layers are used!
I have a few pictures of the set, paw prints, eaten food etc… If you would like to see them just say.
Also a few hours after dusk you say, well dusk is about 4:00 (when the sun sets) 4:30, maybe it would have been me coming that made them not want to come out, i will try and be quieter next time. Well as they say Wildlife Photographers and Naturalists have to have an enormous amount of patience.
If you do have any tips for me, as i am very new to this. I would like it very much. Thanks for all the help
Kristian
Hi Kristian,
Hats off to you for braving the winter nights and sitting tight in the cold. Many of us don’t sit in the winter often, preferring the longer daylight hours and increased activity that spring and summer brings. As Badger Man says activity at a winter Sett is hit and miss, they do get out and about usually later in the evenings but can stay down for days at a time.
Try not to station your friend on the other side of the Sett if you can help it ,even on a crosswind it can lessen your chances. Try to keep any breeze in your face if you can. A torch is a good idea. Sit and listen and when you hear rustlings or sense movement place your hand over the end of the torch, turn it on, then ease the hand away slowly pointed in the direction of sound. Another way is to shine it above and bring it down slowly or just use a red or green filter. Whichever ,try not to wave it around too much, keep it in the same place. Moonlit nights are great especially if you have snow down.
Best of luck.
Ghillie.
Thanks for the advice Ghillie,
I just have one question, what does it mean if there is hot air being produced from inside the set entrance, some days i see it, some days i don’t, i can only think it is the badger, and i only see it early morning (7:45 ish). Is the badger close to the entrance and that is why i can see it? I saw it again this morning.
Any help here?
Kristian
Well as far as I can guess your Sett is well occupied. You are seeing their heat condensing at the entrance when it is cold in winter, coldest at dawn [7.45] of course. Badger Setts nearly always have at least two holes so as to draw air through, so that air you see steam, is their bodyheat and breath. I can only imagine they are tucked up down below and not just inside the entrance. When it is quiet, ie; no ambient noises of the day, try listening at the entrance, you may hear them snore. No joke!
Haha! thats sounds great! I found some hair on the entrance the other day, is there anyway i can tell, for sure, be food or tracks?
If its coarse black and white hair its badger, you can usually find it in the old bedding around the entrances. If its fox its softer and finer. Have you seen a Badger at this Sett yet or are you looking for clues to residency?
Yes, i got white hair, and no i havent seen a badger at this set yet, before the end of the holidays i’m hoping to stay out a few more times.
As Badger Man said its a really tough time for watching them at this time of year. Don’t get disheartened if nothing shows. The Sett sounds active from what you have said. In Spring and Summer, April onwards, things start to get a lot more busy for them above ground. Hang in there.
Hmm there is a question, where is badgerman? I havent seen him in a while =O, yea i think, my next holiday, at Easter, the days will be longer, it’l be warmer and there will be plenty of light available.
Hi all – I’ve been away over Christmas and the New Year so I’ve been quiet for a while. I’ve been in North Wales, far away from my broadband connection.
Mind you, it looks like things have been going on fine without me. By all means keep going guys!
Kristian – I take my hat off to you again. Most of the country is tucked up indoors, out of the freezing weather. And you’re out looking for badgers. That’s real dedication!
This time of year is difficult though, and the freezing weather won’t be helping. The badgers may decide to stay underground if it’s too cold to find food.
Keep trying. If you’re finding tracks (and yes, the fifth toe is often missing from the print – check out the pictures on this site) then the badgers are around. It’s just a matter of time until you see them.
If all else fails, Easter is a great time for badger watching. With luck there may be cubs above ground.
Good luck – keep watching, and thanks for showing us what real dedication is like!
BWM
I live on the edge of a nature reserve,and i get a family of 4 in my front garden every night around 10.30pm,I sit in my lounge window and watch them eat everything that i have put out for them.The foxes also come and eat along side the Badgers.
I have taken some wonderful photographs of them all. The flash doe’s not seem to bother them.
Hope they remember where to come once the snow has gone?
Hello,
I am reading through every bit of your knowledge because on 30th July 2009 I stood in my lane at 10pm (a cul de sac by the woods opposite my front door) with a torch trying to locate the baby Tawny owl I could hear, when I heard something coming towards me in the dark. I thought it would be a neighbours terrier escaped again as all I could hear was tonails on the concrete path. When I turned my torch on it my jaw dropped as I watched a badger coming towards me! It was about 3 metres from me. I haved lived here for 25 years and never imagined there were badgers here. It continued to come but I guess it got wind of me and turned around and went back into the woods a few yards away. I realised I was still standing with my mouth open (in shock!) and when I got my breath back rushed to tell my friend a few doors away. We immediately decieded to keep this sighting quiet as the farmers cattle are next to the woods 100 yards away and I live in a small close knit village. Many people know me hence I will call myself on here Ms B!I am desperate to see one again and have spent quite a lot of time looking for a sett and clues without success. The area here does not look suitable for badgers to live in. There are always foxes around and three weeks before xmas one broke into my shed and took my two white pet ducks. I was devestated I’ve had pet ducks for 18 years. I’m not having them anymore too risky. Instead as I have nothing to defend I will feed foxes instead. On reflection I think the badger I saw was quite small. I am positive my lane is not a regular route for badgers. As it was end of July could it be it was off to find its own new territory? I have spent ” snow weeks” looking for footprint which is what brought me to your site in the first place! Will let you know if I ever see badger again. I bet not but I live in hope!!! B
Hi Sheila, and welcome. Good to hear about your own badgers. I am always very jealous of people who have badgers in their garden. I know that they can be destructive, but all things considered, I’d rather have badgers than a neat garden anyway. The opportunity to just sit and watch them through the window must be fabulous.
All the best
BWM
Hi Mrs B – welcome from another anonymous badger watcher! What a great experience – there is something deeply impressive about an unexpected encounter with a badger. I don’t know what it is, but it seems to have a real effect on people. Ernest Neal, the greatest expert on badgers, devoted his career to them after meeting one by accident in a wood, and my fascination with badgers started when I encountered one on a summer evening.
If there’s one badger about, there will be more. It could well have been a lone individual you saw, but it won’t have been far from its home territory. The other amazing thing about badgers for me is the way they can live in such close proximity to humans and yet stay hidden. It’s only after a fair amount of tracking that I discovered that there are badgers that regularly patrol the field behind my house. I’ve never seen them, and I still don’t know where the sett is, but they’re there. So there may well be a sett near you, tucked away out of sight. Based on what I’ve found in my area, badgers seem to stick to an area about 350m from the sett, although this may vary depending on the resources in the area.
Have a look around and see if there are any signs of badger activity – paths, latrines and so on. If I can find the time I’ll post a guide to badger signs and finding setts. Hopefully you’ll be able to track down a sett and meet up with your badger again.
All the best – and thanks for sharing your story!
BWM
Badgerman,
I need some help with our badgers at a place up north in Wisconsin that we just purchased. Perhaps North American badgers are more aggressive but we were attacked last July by what I believe was a female badger protecting her young. We simply walked out the front door and she came right at us barking like a rapid dog repeatedly…scared the daylights out of us not expecting it. I did my research and do not want to hurt any creature but the aggressiveness of her put us ill at ease; however, I thought we would let her finish raising her young, which I presumed were still in the sett as it was a cool spring and summer so I did and she eventually did leave or settle down.
So throughout the summer after having campfires she would come barking around the cottage after we retired for the night. My husband thought it was hilarious that I thought I could try to train her through the screen door by telling her she was a good girl and that she could go to bed now…seemed to work actually. Ok, I’m city girl with two dogs. 🙂
So, we went up last weekend to try to prep some stumps of dead trees to burn. The people we bought the place from let it go to pot completely not trimming or taking down dead trees and littering all over the area. My husband dug out around the stumps (about 20 or so)very modestly so as not to let the fire burn out of control as the terrain is very sandy and we decided to go grab a bite to eat. We were gone for less than an hour and when we returned to our snowy and previously smooth white retreat, there were tracks EVERYWHERE and yellow marks at each stump. The tracks led to each stump and ran around in crazy frenzied patterns with yellow urine marks everywhere by the stumps. It looked like they wanted to kill us….seriously.
I will not hurt them but will they hurt us? Please help!
I’m not sure what to think…people have told us to “take care of them” and you know what that means…which I refuse to do but I have two dogs, a child, and an elderly father….I love to watch them at night but is this a death wish?
Hi Jennifer, and welcome!
What a fascinating story. I must say at the beginning that I am not an expert on American Badgers. They have some different habits to our Eurasian Badgers, although they are closely related.
The good news is that they do not seem to be very dangerous. As with our British Badgers, the only attacks on humans seem to be from badgers that have been wounded or trapped, or from badgers that have been raised with people and so lost their natural fear – see https://badgerwatcher.com/2009/01/21/the-white-house-badger
The U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Land Management website has this to say on the subject (amusingly listed as a ‘Fun Fact’ – they must have a strange idea of fun that includes being attacked by badgers!):
Fun Facts: Badgers have earned a reputation for being ferocious. If you accidentally corner a badger, he will probably either burrow out of sight, or loudly hiss at you, sometimes faking that he will attack. They very rarely attack humans, so if you do see one, you can scare him away by yelling and waving your hands above your head.
From what you describe it sounds like your badger is being territorial. I’m guessing that you surprised her when you came out of your door, and she thinks that you are on her property. This would explain the urine marking too – she may be reaffirming her right to be there in response to your husband’s digging. Unlike British badgers, which live in social groups, American badgers are solitary and will chase off other badgers that enter their territory.
My best advice is to be careful, but not to worry too much. If American Badgers are like their British cousins they will almost always avoid a fight if they can, preferring to run away. They are not naturally aggressive creatures. They do have a nasty bite though, and you should avoid getting her trapped or cornered. I’d keep the dogs away as much as possible too, at least until you’re more confident of the situation. I’m sure things will settle down.
I’m very fond of badgers, but the safety of you and your family must come first. If you have any doubts then you should take further action. In the meantime, enjoy watching.
PS – every authority on the subject says that badgers cannot be trained or domesticated. Best not to try.
Let me know if you have any more news
All the best
BWM
BM,
Thanks so much for your advice. Do you think there is only one badger as it seems impossible that only one could have made all of those tracks in that short amount of time?
I wish I could get inside their/her head and know how she felt…now I feel bad as it obviously wasn’t a good feeling for her. I love animals but now it also seems that the deer and even bears don’t come around any more.
I’ve also heard around town that they often carry rabies. Do you know anything in those regards? That is definitely a scary thought but I do love watching for them at night. My husband sometimes wakes up late into the night and there I am on the couch looking out the window hoping to catch a glimpse of one in action.
I’m really torn about the whole thing. Also, our DNR (Department of Natural Resources) is not the most trustworthy in my opinion so I’m very hesitant to contact them. I hate to break up a clan, if one indeed does exist because I’m sure they will want to destroy or relocate her and charge us a tidy sum, as they like revenue! Is there anything I can do to settle them down a tad?
I’m usually a ‘No worries” kind of girl but I have to admit, I do have some trepidations about the whole thing.
Once again though, thanks so much for your reassuring words. I’ll wait it out and see what happens. Hopefully we won’t catch one off guard again, that wasn’t much fun!
Happy watching and not running…by the way, if I am chased again should I run in a straight line or wavy line…no, seriously. I cut the grass and I have no idea where the sett is as there are huge lumps all around the area. I wish she would pay my taxes as she is obviously the owner of this vacation tract! 🙂
Hi Jennifer,
Sorry to hear about your over friendly Badger. As BWM says it certainly sounds like it is behaving territorialy. Greatly so to run you and the Bears off! I have worked with Whitetails, etc in the midwest [Wisconsin too] and west for 15 years and came across them regularly but not as much as I would have liked to. They are much more aggressive[-carnivorous] than our European Badgers and yes more solitary and less family orientated. I have a Game warden friend in CO who used to catch them by hand and he said pound for pound only the Weasel had more guts. They can dig faster than a man with a shovel so they say and yes as you know they really can dig. In the summer they can move house each day. Having sneaked up on a few, I have had them hiss, growl and make bluff charges at me on occasion but I have bluffed them out and they have always given ground. Mostly they run to earth. It sounds like yours is really sore you have moved in on ‘her’ place.
With regards to Rabies I am pretty sure yours doesn’t have it ,as by the time symptoms show [aggression] it should never live beyond ten days. There is a passive rabies, were it walks about in a daze and just stares at you, I have seen skunks and raccoons with that, but again that has a ten day duration till death.
She may have a mate still hanging about or the young from last year but it could be just her doings on the stumps. Were the track sizes differant?
I would play it cool, when she charges next, shout back at her and advance, but if she gets too close [a foot or three],showing no sign of stopping, back off. They have much shorter legs than the Europeans so can’t run as fast .
Badgers are great to have on the doorstep, but please don’t let one keep you a prisoner in your own place.
Hope this helps.
Thanks Ghillie – this all makes sense. It does sound like the American badgers are more aggressive than ours in Britain, but it doesn’t seem like there’s any real danger.
I hope this puts your mind at ease a little, Jennifer. Good luck with your badger, and let us know how you get on.
All the best
BWM
Yes, actually the track sizes were quite similar but varied in gait, I’ve never seen anything like it. They were the strangest arrangement I’ve ever seen and believe it or not I grew up on a lake up north. While the size of the tracks seemed similar, the gait seemed to suggest that at times she/they were running very quickly as the tracks were set somewhat longer in stride while others were curiously closer together like she was just “checking things out”. Perhaps she was hunting…but I’m not sure.
I wanted to go out and take samples but my husband did not think that was a good idea at the time and he suggested waiting until the morn. Well, it rained like a son …….all night long and by the morning, not much was left except some of his from working out there. Strangely though the tracks would start out like two coming together but ending up with one set…I have no idea…very weird patterns.
any thoughts? tired…long weekend watching and trying to figure out. gotta’ go to work soon. Any help much appreciated to both of you. I will photograph the tracks this weekend and we’ll go from there…although they/she probably won’t show up as we are burning this w/e.
Harmony for all,
Jenn
Hi
Just come back from the woods
Found a burrow
2 questions please
Do badgers setts go straight or turn as they go underground
Do young badgers make a high pitched screaching noise that I could hear from two sett entrances close to each other, it was the same noise (I assume it was a badgers sett) I could not see any hairs or latrines near by.
They did not stop the noise when my wife approached like an earthquake coming or when wee talked close to the sett
Were they young badgers?
Thanks for your advise on this
Keep up the web, its great
Bernie
Hi Bernie – welcome!
I confess that I haven’t heard anything from a badger sett myself. The tunnels will go this way and that underground and may interconnect in all sorts of ways – it’s not uncommon to have badgers going into one hole and coming out from another. Mind you, rabbits will also have connecting burrows too. Badger setts are a sideways D shape – broader than they are tall – but badger and rabbit holes can look similar.
As to what the noise could have been, I honestly don’t know. Any cubs in the sett at this time of year will be very young. Most are born in mid-February. It could, I suppose, have been a badger birth taking place. That would have been a rare event indeed! Other than that, it could have been rabbits (a rabbit/stoat encounter?). It could be foxes, but I don’t know too much about what foxes would be doing at this time of year.
So I’m a bit stumped. If anyone has any ideas, let us know. In the meantime, thanks for sharing. I’ll see if I can find anything out.
All the best
BWM
Hi there, We have six Badgers in Denmead, Hampshire visit our back garden daily. (If anybody would like to view six badgers feeding please do let me know.)
There is a sett about 15 meters from our back door. Every night at around 9.00pm the badgers come out to feed. We always leave bread and peanut butter for them, there such noisy eaters! They some times come individually but most of the time all six come. I have some photos of them when they were cubs but now they’re all grown up.
We have been feeding them for about 2 years now and they are very comfortable letting people watch. I’ve been sat 2 meters away with my camera and they dont seem to mind… until they hear the shutter of the camera then they grab what they can and waddle off into the bushes.
We have recently been told about a new housing development on the land next to our house (which is where the sett is) does anybody know how to go about appealing against this devleopment?! We need the springwatch team to come round with the cameras! 😀 I would like to make a difference, they’re such amazing animals.
Chris.
Hi Chris
Thanks for sharing – it sounds like you have some amazing close encounters, especially with six badgers only a few feet away! You’re very lucky having a sett so close. I am quite envious…
Badgers are a protected species, so it is against the law to interfere with a badger sett. This doesn’t mean that there can’t be any development, but it does mean that the developers have to take steps to ensure the safety of the badgers. I’d get in touch with your local badger group or the Badger Trust and see what they recommend.
I hope you are able to enjoy your badgers for years to come.
All the best
BWM
Hey Badgerman 🙂
I had another successful watch last night and got my first ever photograph of a badger while it was munching on the peanuts I put out. It didn’t mind the flash which really surprised me though my camera is silver so when it did look up it spotted it and ran back into the sett. I desperately do not want to disturb them too much especially this time of the year when they could be feeding cubs. My plan is to paint my camera with some dark cheap nail varnish I bought (black, green and brown) to camouflage it.
My main question for you today is how do you deal with ticks? Last night when I got in I found one large tick on my top underneath my coat. I always tuck myself in like my trousers into my socks and my t shirt into my trousers etc but last night i didn’t put my balaclava and hat on until I was in my hiding spot and I have very long dark hair so I worry if any could have gotten onto my head I won’t see them. I was hoping this area would be tick free but it appears not and as its warming up now the ticks will only become more and more of a problem. What do you do to ensure you don’t bring any home?
Thanks, Ele.
Oh and Chris Jamieson.. I live in Hampshire also in Eastleigh and have 4 setts I know of nearby but am very envious of your garden sett! My other half has badgers that dig and eat a lot just behind his garden. I would love to meet up with and get to know another badger lover and so far the watches I’ve done with my other half have been unsuccessful and I do feel guilty about spending all those hours out there with him only to see nothing. If you are still ok with people coming to watch your badgers we would love to do so some time.
Thanks, Ele.
Hi Ele – congratulations again! It sounds like you’ve really got a good feel for your badgers there. Well done too for your efforts to avoid disturbing them.
As for the ticks, they can be nasty little things. I’ve only ever picked up a couple on my legs, and I confess I was fascinated by them. But they can be nasty, not only because they’re insects that drink your blood and can cause infection when you try and get them out, but also because they carry Lyme’s disease, which can have serious and very long term consequences.
There is an excellent resource on the web that deals with just this issue. Have a look at Pablo’s Tickwatch page at Woodlife (http://www.woodlife.co.uk/tickwatch/). Pablo has some great tips on avoiding ticks and on removing them if they do latch on. The rest of the site is well worth a look too – very interesting indeed.
In the US, where they generally take outdoor pastimes much more seriously than us, and where they also have more ticks, they have evolved a whole range of different types of tick-proof clothing. Have a look at http://www.cabelas.com/bug-proof-clothing.shtml for some examples. Now that’s clothing for the hardcore badger watcher!
I hope the ticks don’t keep you away and you get many more experiences as the evenings get longer and the cubs come out.
All the best
BWM
Hi BWM,
I write to you having recently been badger-watching for the first time… and I’m hooked already!
I’m very lucky in that my father is a shepherd in the Cotswolds so we have access to c600 acres of farmland, including a number of small spinneys and plantations.
As my girlfriend is a budding naturalist and avid fan of springwatch(!) who grew up in a city, my Dad and I spent a couple of hours in March erecting a ‘high chair’ in a tree that overlooks what he knew was a well established sett in one of the spinneys near his cottage, in the hope that she might see first-hand what she has so enjoyed watching on tv.
As this was the first time that any of us had tried to watch badgers (let alone erect a high chair for doing so!), we took care to site it downwind from the sett and not dig any of the structure in to the ground (for fear of distrubing the soil in or around the sett).
Having left the spinney and chair well alone for c6wks, so that the resident badgers would become accustomed to it, we had our first outing on Friday evening.
My girlfriend and I took up residence in our ‘2-seater des-res in the canopy’ at about 7.45 (45mins-1hr before dusk). To my enormous surprise we didn’t have to wait long for some fantastic watching!
There are three large entrances (all connected to the same sett, I think??) sited within 15 yds of the high chair. At around 8.00pm, we had had our first sighting of a badger – a small and inquisitive head poking out of the far entrance, scenting the air for a couple of minutes and then returning underground, having seemingly decided that it was too early to get out of bed! Fifteen minutes later, another brock emerged from the nearest hole (no more than ten feet from the base of our tree), spent a few minutes investigating and then returned underground.
Then, at about half eight, a very large and healthy looking adult emerged from the last hole, about 15ft away, full of confidence and set to get the night’s activities underway. He/She (not sure how to distinguish sex??) set about cleaning out dirty bedding – scraping and dragging the soil and debris with enthusiastic gusto!
Unfortunately, and despite our best efforts to remain completely motionless, it was clearly aware of our scent. At first it seemed only to have passing reservations about the odd smell but as time passed it became more suspicious – culminating, after about 5mins, in standing up on it’s hind legs to try to pinpoint the higher than normal origin of the scent, before dashing back in to the sett when it concluded that whatever the smell was, it wasn’t normal!
We waited another five minutes but once we were sure that it wasn’t going to resurface anytime soon, we got down from the tree and backed away quietly, hoping that we didn’t disturb the badgers too much and taking comfort in the knowledge that, as it wasn’t yet dark, they still had the whole of the night to regain confidence and go about their normal life.
With one successful sortie under our belts, though, we can’t wait to go again!
Next time out, I think we will try to pick an evening with a bit more breeze (so that our scent doesn’t hang in the air) and perhaps I can also convince the girlfriend to forgo the deodorant and perfume!
Whilst we are very keen to ensure that we take things one step at a time – for the badger’s benefit, rather than ours – I do have a couple of questions for you…
Firstly, can badgers see red-filtered torchlight? and, if so, is it likely to disturb them?
…personally, I would rather see less and be safe in the knowledge that we haven’t spooked them but if its possible to spend longer watching them, see more and not upset them, then that would be great!
Many thanks in advance!
Jon
(…and no, the surname is not a joke!)
Hi Jon – welcome aboard!
Thanks for sharing a great story. Would you object if I made this into a ‘guest post’ too? I think it’s worth making it a little more public. Besides, I always enjoy hearing about other people’s badger experiences, and I suspect others do too.
As to the red torchlight, apparently they don’t see it too well, or at least less well than other colours of light. I haven’t used torches too much myself so I’m not an expert. Mind you, there are plenty of folks that use regular white light to watch badgers without it seeming to bother them. I think perhaps the trick is to get the badgers accustomed to it, whether red or white. All I can say is try it and see. If it spooks the badgers, then stop. If not, carry on!
All the best
BWM
HI YA , man this BADGER wotching has got me ,been six times in the last month been very lucky ,found some lovly sets in a little wood dont they love penutts so far 1 mother with 6 little uns around four months old WOW,im in a tree six foot away there below me ,they dont mind the camra and red head tourch is spot on,waiting for me night vision scope wicked,went last night got very close two foot away to close they didnt hang aboutstill learning about my knew clan,All the best to you all .
Hi Nature Boy – welcome.
Good to hear you’ve been successful, and good to hear about the cubs too. Keep up the good work!
All the best
BWM
Hi there all badger watchers. I have recently discovered two badger setts on our land. I am hoping we have not inadvertantly scared them off. I have not seen them yet, am going to go out just before dusk and watch, any tips welcome,
Hi Bren, and welcome
My first tip is always to say, beware. It can get addictive. Other than that (and I guess you’ve read the guide on here) my best tips would be:
1) visit the sett in the morning and plan where you’re going to sit. Identify a few good spots so you’ve got somewhere to go, no matter which direction the wind is coming from. Plan how you’ll get there without crossing too many badger paths or getting upwind. There’s nothing worse than blundering around trying to figure out where to sit just as the badgers are about to emerge.
2) the most important thing to think about is the wind. The badgers most important sense is their sense of smell. I have a book I bought in the US with the engaging title of ‘500 Deer Hunting Tips’ (I don’t hunt deer, but a lot of the advice is very sound for watching them too – and the Americans take this sort of thing very seriously). Quite a few of the tips refer to “making sure that your human stench does not blow towards the deer” or similar. At first I was offended. Stench? Surely I don’t smell that bad? After all, I bathe regularly (whether I need it or not). But it’s actually a good way of thinking about it and it does focus your attention about how important scent is for mammal watching. Always, always stay downwind – when approaching, when watching and when leaving. Have the wind in your face all the time.
3) get there early until you know their habits. Better to be safe than sorry. It gives you time to unwind and think too.
If you do these things, there isn’t much danger of scaring the badgers away. They’re bloody-minded creatures and not easily disturbed. I know setts that are next to busy roads and footpaths, and the badgers seem to be happy enough.
Good luck, and let us know how you get on.
All the best
BWM
Hi Badger Watching Man,
Great blog. I walk my dogs in a near by silver birch wood and there are plenty of what I believe to be Badger setts. The dogs are obviously quite intruiged and have a sniff at the entrance but nothing more.
Over the past few nights, I’ve been walking the dogs closer to dusk due to the later evenings and have heard some scratching around of the leafs in a clearing – not visible from the track. The dogs seem very alert at the edge of the track but will go no further towards the sound.
Is this likely to be a Badger and do they pose any threat to the dogs or visa versa?
Thank you.
Hi BadgerBeginner, and thanks
It sounds intriguing, and could well be badgers – especially at dusk, but there are many animals that make holes. Have you seen any other signs, such as tracks or dung pits? You can always try smoothing out a patch of soil near any paths and seeing what tracks turn up
I wouldn’t worry about the dogs. True, I wouldn’t want to get too close to an injured and cornered badger, but there’s almost no chance of any trouble in the normal run of things. Badgers are naturally cautious and will turn and run at the first sign of people or dogs, so there’s little chance of a confrontation.
Who knows what you’ll see on your walks though. I was walking through a wood at dusk about six years ago now, when a badger wandered out in front of me. And I’ve been going back there ever since to watch them…
All the best
BWM
For the last 7 weeks we have a badger visiting our small garden each evening! He,now named Bertie, comes about 10:30 each night!!!! We scatter a few peanuts on the grass, down the steps and even on the door steps……. not one is there in the morning!Our security light flashes on an off as he moves about but he doesn’t mind at all! I managed to get a bit of video of him when it’s on!!! We think he must be in the very near woodland! Last week he wandered over to where our neighbours cat was sitting on a low wall! My heart went into my mouth! He stopped and they were about 10inches apart, the cat meowed, Bertie turned and walked away!!!!! He came back later when the cat had gone!!!!!!!!
Hi everyone!
I work night shifts in a hospital in Bristol. The hospital has some lovely grounds surrounding it and on occasion in the past I’ve seen a fox or two. But over the past two nights I’ve seen a group of 5 young-ish foxes and 2 young-ish badgers! My first encounter with the badgers was when I was walking to my car on my break and they both came running round a corner and brushed past my leg! Needless to say it startled me quite a bit.
And tonight I’ve been sat in my car watching them run round and round chasing each other through the car park which is on the edge of a small field 🙂 it’s been such a treat watching them and my growing curiosity led me to find this website. It’s been great reading all about them as I knew very little before but I have a few questions for anyone willing to enlighten me. Firstly I’ve noticed one of them is slightly smaller than the other but they both a quite long tails, does this mean they are both male? Secondly, they are constantly running around chasing each other, which I’m guessing is them playing together? Also, why did they run so closely past me? I was making a fair bit of noise (I had a carrier bag full of stuff) so surely they heard me coming and must have seen me once they came around the corner. I thought they would have run away from me, not at me!
Anyway, thanks for reading and I hope someone can answer my questions.
If it wasn’t so dark out I’d try and get a video of them, as they are running past close enough for me to see every little detail!
🙂
We have just purchased a property in chippenham, very excited to find a track in the garden, snuffle holes in the grass and a latrine hole thst looks freshly used, looking forward to seeing my garden visitors 🙂