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Activity patterns

All of the badger species are basically nocturnal and are active mainly at night, spending the daylight hours hidden away in a burrow or sett. However, virtually all of the badgers have been seen out and about during the day at some time or other. Daytime activity seems to be more common in isolated areas where there is little disturbance from humans, during times when food supplies are short, or, in the case of females, when there are young to be fed.

In the case of those badgers which live in areas with cold winters (the European badger and the American badger, in the northern and mountainous parts of their ranges), activity patterns vary through the course of the year. During winter, these badgers are much less active than usual. Such seasonal variations in activity are less likely to be a feature of the lives of the other badger species, as they mostly live in climates which are warm all year round. However, very little is known about this aspect of these badgers' lives, so drawing such conclusions may be unwise. In the case of the honey badger for example, a field study in the Kalahari has shown that this species is more active by day in the winter.

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Picture credits

The photo of the badger footprint used at the head of this Article is © Steve Jackson. Credits for the photos used in the right-hand margin of this page for site navigation can be found on the Credits page.

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