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Introduction

For most of the world's badgers, humans are the only other animals that pose any real threat to their wellbeing. This is reflected in our use of the word "badger" as a verb - to badger somebody is to pester or worry them or to persecute them relentlessly. This terminology derives from the practices of digging badgers from their setts and baiting them for hours on end with dogs; these activities were common practices in Britain until relatively recent times. Sadly, these so-called 'sports' still go on today, and badgers are also trapped, hunted and persecuted in other ways for 'sport'; for meat, fur and fat; and in the name of 'pest control', in many of the countries in which they occur.

We humans also put pressure on the world's badgers in a number of other ways. In some areas they are killed in the name of disease control. In many places, badger habitat has been destroyed by changes in land use associated with agriculture and development. In those states with high road densities and large volumes of road traffic, many badgers are killed by road traffic accidents (RTAs).

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Hunting and "pest control"

The European badger and the American badger are both trapped and hunted over most of their ranges. The American species is taken for its fur - around 50,000 animals per year. The European badger meanwhile is taken in the course of "sport" hunting (including badger digging), as well as being hunted for its fur, meat and fat. At least 100,000 are thought to be taken every year in western Europe (west of the former Soviet Union) alone. Both species have also been killed as pests. "Pest control" operations (trapping, snaring and poisoning) aimed at other species have taken their toll too. A combination of these two factors has led to large scale reductions in the numbers of the American badger in certain parts of its range.

There is little on record regarding the other badger species, although it is known that the Palawan stink badger is occasionally used for food by the local population. The honey badger meanwhile has been extensively persecuted in southern and eastern Africa because of its depredations on commercial bee hives, and its numbers have been greatly reduced in places because of this.

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Disease "control" programmes

The Eurasian badger has been killed in large numbers under various government-sanctioned "culling" programmes in attempts to control diseases - bovine tuberculosis in Britain and Ireland, and rabies in mainland Europe.

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Habitat change

In many areas developments or agricultural practices have destroyed the habitats on which badgers depend, and continue to do so. Increasing urbanisation, road building, and the development of quarries to provide raw materials has led to the loss of many badger setts in Britain, while changes of land use due to agriculture have had major impacts, especially in parts of the American badger's range. On the other hand, some land-use changes in North America have actually assisted the badger; the conversion of forested areas to meadowland has reduced overall biodiversity in some areas but has been beneficial to badgers by creating the type of habitat that they prefer.

In south-east Asia meanwhile, large scale deforestation must have had an impact on local populations the hog, ferret and stink badgers.

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Road casualties

In places where road density is high many badgers are killed by traffic. Both the European and the American species suffer large scale casualties from road traffic in those parts of their ranges with high road densities (around 50,000 European badgers are killed on the roads in Britain every year).

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Lack of information

There is also the problem of a lack of information about badgers in many parts of their ranges. In many countries there is little or no knowledge of the size of local badger populations, or whether these populations are increasing, stable, or decreasing. There is also very little known about the habitat requirements and other needs of many of the badger species. Without knowledge of badger population sizes and trends, we cannot make proper judgements about the need to take steps to conserve them. And without a better understanding of the needs of badgers, any efforts that are made to conserve them are unlikely to be fully effective.

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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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