Whoever watches wildlife should take care that in the process they do not become wild themselves; and if you gaze for long enough into the woods, the woods also gaze back into you…
The Badger Watching Man
I am the Badger Watching Man.
I live, with my wife, daughter Scarlett, cat Mayfield and three chickens, in a small village about 50 miles north of London – a few houses, lots of fields, and a fair amount of mature woodland. I’m fascinated by the wildlife that surrounds us all, even in this relatively crowded country. There’s a whole rich world out there that most people don’t even suspect exists. I feel privileged that I’ve managed to get a little closer to it.
I’ve been watching my local badgers for a little over two years now. If my writing helps to awaken an interest in others about badgers, British wildlife or the simple pleasures of being out in the countryside at night, then perhaps that is no bad thing either.
How I started watching badgers
See my post ‘In the beginning…’ Look in the archives on the right, or click here to jump to it.
How to get the most out of this blog
I’m writing this blog for a whole host of different reasons. It was born out of a need to keep a diary of my badger experiences, something I could refer back to and cross reference in later years, combined with a desire to see how blogging works. Now though, it’s taken on a bit of a life of its own.
That’s what I want to get out of it. But what about you, gentle reader? What do you want from it? Here are some tips to help you get what you want.
Posts and Pages – these are what make up the blog. There are a few pages (this is one) for the broader subjects. Everything else is put into the posts. Posts are listed in date order, like any diary.
Categories – because the posts are in date order, all the different subjects get jumbled up. To make it easier to find a particular post they are divided into categories. These categories are listed on the right hand side of the page. Fieldnotes are my experiences in the field. Thoughts and Musings are random discussions on badgers and badger-watching. That’s not a badger! is a category of posts that are about other animals and wildlife. So, if you want to see all the posts about badger watching trips, just click on the Fieldnotes category. Simple! The list of categories will grow as I add more content. The next will be a series of practical guides.
The Search Facility – this is very useful. It searches all the text on the site. So, if you want to find out at what time the badgers emerge from their sett, type emerge into the search box and hey presto – it will find all the posts that use this word. Likewise, to find out about all experiences with nettles (and there are a few), just search for nettles. You get the idea. Do make use of it, because it is a very handy feature.
Archives – this is a list of posts, split into months for easy reference. Not as useful as the search facility, but handy if you want to see what was happening at a particular time.
Comments – let’s make this site interactive! Feel free to comment on any of the posts. I’d be delighted to hear about your own experiences and stories, and I’ll happily answer questions as best as I can. So, please do make use of the comments feature and you can be part of the site.
Subscribe – lastly, if you’re interested in badgers or badger watching and want to keep up to date, why not subscribe? This means you’ll have the chance to read each post as it is published. You can subscribe by e-mail, or if you’re familiar with RSS feeds, you can click on Entries RSS in the Meta section on the right.
So there you have it. Like all things, this blog will evolve as time goes by. If you have any thoughts or feedback, don’t forget to let me know through the Comments sections.
Or, if you want to get in touch with me off the blog, feel free to e-mail me at badgerwatchingman@googlemail.com
All material on the site © Tales from the Wood
Tales from the Wood - The Diary of a Badger Watching Man 
a widget 4 u
a rare (& rather sad event) – we would very much appreciate a knowledgeable second opinion on
ty
Hi – do you mean the badger vs. fox incident? That is unusual.
I’ve seen foxes around badger setts, and whilst they don’t exactly seem scared, they do seem to give the badgers a wide berth. Pablo (see right) has even got good evidence of foxes living in badger setts.
I’ve not heard of them fighting each other, but I can imagine that the fox would come off worst. Were they near a road at all? Could it be a case of a road accident for one or other of them? Otherwise, as you say, odd things may happen if there’s cubs about.
Very curious!
these sad , individuals were a mile from any traffic – in an enclosed wetland – photo ?? barely 40 yards apart
latest badger chaos – HEPWORTH
we got a new & bad problem , now : ( – a sett has been dug & a badger killed
though not directly on my patch – its near enough to have no choice other than to
give our immediate attention –
foxes have lived alongside
badgers for ever – the general status is – fox gets up 15 minutes before brock , & stays out late , I know its a rare
tragic event , but there is no clearer explaination – sorry but
there are also some sick barbaric thugs – after we eliminate
them – electronically – I guess , the only way .
we can learn the intimate workings of species interactivity .
my patch is presently 19 designated territories with some 160 ish badgers –
my first week in this job – could even be my last
Hi there – if you want to get in touch, you can reach me at badgerwatchingman@googlemail.com
All the best
we now have a new domain/s
http://kirklees-badgers.org.uk
any suggestions for the site are very welcome – you know what we are up against
“I live, with my wife and three chickens” -> “I live, with my wife, MY DAUGHTER and three chickens” surely?
You’re right! The page has now been amended to include the newer members of the household – Scarlett, my daughter, and Mayfield, our cat.
What a habitat you are lucky enough to have around you, it sounds very lovely.
Kind Regards
Tony Powell
Thanks Tony
I am lucky, living in the country, and I don’t forget it. But I am always keen to point out that my local patch isn’t anything really special. It’s the ordinary mixture of arable, livestock, hedgerow and small woodland you find all over lowland Britain. I think if there’s a message in this site, it’s that if you can get to know your local area then you’d be surprised at what you can find.
But you’re right, it is nice.
All the best
BWM
Hi Badgerman,
First let me say what a great Blog and Site !!! I have been watching a sett for about 3 years now in Lancs, the sett is on the edge of a small wood with about 3 / 4 large trees, the sett is in the middle on flat ground with about 10 holes dug in a sandy type soil with a large grass field one side and longish grass on the other 3 sides. I sit at the base of a big old oak tree and watch and photograph them, I have had them as close as 5 ft (To Close to photograph) Some nights its all very quite and not a sight or sound of Brock, I had 6 visits on the trot like that, but on my next visit they were every where. They don’t seem to mind me taking photos and with a flash gun and a head torch on my head. I get there a couple of hours early to get set up and to settle down an wait, I stay until midnight, then pack up and leave the sett as I found it and Brock in peace. Yes they are a truely magic and have given me so much joy to be so close to Brocks world…. Photos can be seen on http://www.seymourphotos.org or on Face Book……
Kind Regards Alan Seymour..
Hi Alan – thank you, and thanks for writing in. Sorry it’s taken a while to reply.
It’s always good to hear from another badger enthusiast, and one who obviously cares for them too. I’ll certainly have a look at your site too.
I’ve always steered clear of flash photography, but I hear more and more from people who say that it doesn’t seem to bother the badgers. I may well try a few flash shots and see how it goes. If you’re getting them that close to you then it obviously isn’t affecting them too much.
All the best – and I hope you continue to enjoy your badgers for a long time to come.
All the best
BWM
Hi BWM.
Have been watching a sett up in Lancs for the last three months. I have been using a trail camera to watch the badgers. The camera has motion detection so only takes pictures when the badger appears. It then takes a 20sec video of the badger. Illumination is by LED’s on the front of the camera.It takes colour photos and video in daylight, & b/w after dusk.
Unfortunately (like your findings last year) our badgers do not appear till after dusk so I’ve only got b/w piccies & videos so far. I’m truly envious of people’s photos of badgers in colour, in apparent daylight, but as badgers are nocturnal creatures in the wild, does it not seem that some of these badger photos are “stage managed”.
Hi BWM,
I’ve known about a sett in the woods next to us for about 5 years, but its only in the past two years I’ve really become interested in wildlife. Last year and over winter I went down to the sett to look for clues, and I was relatively pleased (dung holes with fresh poo), and then late last summer (around July) I went down three nights in a row, seeing a single badger twice. I was chuffed, and planned on waiting earerly until this spring/summer to watch them.
Unfortunately the signs aren’t looking to good… I was monitoring a hole a bit further away from the sett(about 20m) which had been freshly dug and I suspected it to be the nest chamber. But this turned out to be a fox hole which was subsequently filled in by the land owner (frustrating but legal I think?…)
Sorry about the ramble…but my question is, would a badger leave its sett ever? It doesn’t seem very like them, and the sett it fairly decent size (about six/seven holes)
Could the badger I saw been a newborn travelling through looking for its territory, and if so, why leave?
I drive around the roads near the woods so I think it’s unlikely it’s been hit.
Any response would be greatly appreciated and Im sorry about the long message!!!