# Badger (*Meles meles*)

> The European badger is a stocky, powerfully built mammal famous for the black-and-white stripes on its face. It is nocturnal, lives in family groups called clans inside large underground burrow systems known as setts, and feeds mainly on earthworms. Badgers weigh up to about 12 kg (26 lb) and typically live around 6 years in the wild.

- **Category:** Mammal
- **Conservation status (IUCN):** Least Concern
- **Range:** Across most of Europe and into western and central Asia, from Britain and Scandinavia to the Middle East; widespread throughout the UK.
- **Canonical page:** https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/badger/
- **Last reviewed:** 2026-07-16

## Scientific classification

- **Kingdom:** Animalia
- **Phylum:** Chordata
- **Class:** Mammalia
- **Order:** Carnivora
- **Family:** Mustelidae
- **Genus:** Meles

## Facts at a glance

| Attribute | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Scientific name | Meles meles |
| Diet | Omnivore (mostly earthworms) |
| Habitat | Woodland, hedgerows, farmland, grassland |
| Lifespan | Around 6 years wild (up to 14) |
| Weight | 9–12 kg (20–26 lb), heavier in autumn |
| Top speed | 30 km/h (19 mph) in short bursts |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |

## Behaviour and the sett

Badgers are highly social and live in clans of up to a dozen animals that share a sett — a maze of tunnels and chambers dug into a bank or woodland floor, often used and enlarged by generations of badgers over decades. They are strongly nocturnal, emerging at dusk to forage and patrol well-worn paths, and they keep their setts scrupulously clean, regularly changing the dry grass and leaves they use as bedding.

## Diet and feeding

The European badger is an omnivore, but earthworms make up the bulk of its diet — a single badger can eat several hundred in one night, snuffling them from damp grassland after rain. They also take insects, slugs, small mammals, amphibians, fruit, nuts, and cereals, and their powerful forelimbs and long claws let them dig out underground prey and excavate the sett.

## Habitat and range

Badgers are found across most of Europe and into western Asia, favouring deciduous woodland and field edges with soft, well-drained soil for digging. In the United Kingdom they are widespread and legally protected, though they remain at the centre of a long-running debate over bovine tuberculosis and culling in parts of England.

## Conservation

The badger is listed as Least Concern, with stable populations across much of its range. In Britain the main threats are road traffic, illegal persecution such as badger-baiting and sett interference, and habitat loss. Badgers and their setts are protected under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992, making it an offence to harm them or damage a sett.

## Frequently asked questions

### What is a group of badgers called?

A group of badgers is called a clan or a cete, and the family-sized group that shares a sett is usually called a clan. A baby badger is called a cub.

### What do badgers eat?

Badgers are omnivores whose favourite food is earthworms; they can eat several hundred in a single night. They also eat insects, slugs, small mammals, frogs, fruit, nuts, and cereal crops.

### Are badgers dangerous to humans?

Badgers are shy and avoid people, so attacks are extremely rare. However, a cornered badger has powerful jaws and claws and can defend itself fiercely, so it should never be handled or approached.

### Where do badgers live?

Badgers live in underground burrow systems called setts, dug into banks, woodland, and hedgerows across Europe and western Asia. A sett can have many entrances and be used by generations of the same clan.

### Are badgers nocturnal?

Yes. Badgers are mainly nocturnal, emerging from the sett at dusk to forage through the night and returning before dawn, though they are occasionally seen near their setts in the early evening.

## Sources

- [IUCN Red List — Meles meles.](https://www.iucnredlist.org/search?query=Meles%20meles&searchType=species)
- [Animal Diversity Web — Meles meles. University of Michigan Museum of Zoology.](https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Meles_meles/)
- [Wikipedia — Badger.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_badger)

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Source: Global Animal Guide (https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/badger/). Licensed CC BY-NC 4.0 — free for non-commercial reuse with attribution.