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What time to arrive at the sett

It is important that you arrive at the sett well before the badgers will be emerging, so that you can scatter some food around and get into position without frightening the animals. Badgers usually emerge around dusk, but actual emergence times vary depending on a range of factors. These include the time of year, weather conditions, and on the behaviour patterns of individual badgers.

Generally, badgers emerge well after dusk in the winter, at around dusk in spring and autumn, and before dusk (sometimes well before) in summer. To begin with, it is best to get to the sett early and wait. If you have not seen anything after an hour or so, go home and try another night. Next time, arrive at the sett half an hour before the time you left on your last visit. Repeat the process until you find out what time the badgers are emerging. Once you know when they are coming out, use this time as a guide. Remember though that the emergence times will get later as the evenings draw out in spring and summer, and earlier as the nights draw in after the longest day.

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Approaching the sett

As you approach the sett, check the direction of the wind, as this will determine your watching place. Ideally, the wind should be blowing from the badgers to you, but as long as it's not blowing directly from you to them you should be OK. Remember though that in woods or on hillsides, there may be odd wind patterns and the spot you thought was OK may not be.

Judging the wind direction on relatively calm evenings can be tricky. If you're a cigarette smoker you should have no problems, just watch where your smoke goes. If however like me you're a cigarette hater, or if you are just an ordinary non-smoker, you could try pulling up a handful or two of grass or some dead leaves as you approach, holding them aloft and letting them go to see which way the wind carries them.

As you get closer, slow down. Tread carefully and avoid making any noise, just in case the badgers are already out.

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When you arrive at the sett

If you find that the badgers are already out on your arrival, then you will have to be very careful to avoid frightening them, or they will disappear underground and may not come out again for some time. They key is to be as quiet as possible. Move slowly and watch where you are putting your feet. If possible, avoid treading on dead leaves or twigs, or walking through long grass. Step on bare ground or short grass where you can. Keep an eye on the badgers at the same time, and get yourself into a position from where you can watch. If you do frighten the badgers as you try to get into position, and they dash underground, carry on anyway. Settle into position, keep as quiet as you can, and wait to see if they come back out. If they are half expecting to find some peanuts and raisins, they may not wait for very long at all before they re-emerge. If in the meantime you have scattered some food about, they should find it and hopefully stay out as long as there is no further disturbance.

If there is no sign of the badgers, then you have time to prepare yourself properly. If you have taken food for the badgers, you should scatter this over the sett. Don't get too close to the sett, but throw the food from a distance, so that you don't leave your scent on the ground where the badgers will detect it. Scatter the food widely across the sett area, so that the badgers take longer to find it all. If all the food is put in one pile, once it is discovered it will be eaten very quickly and the badgers may then disappear, all in a matter of minutes! Make sure that some of the food lands near the sett entrances, so that the badgers find it when they emerge. Also be sure that most of the food is scattered in those spots which you will have a good view of.

Once you have put out food for the badgers, get yourself into your watching position. Choose a place where you will be comfortable, so that you will not have to move around too much later on when the badgers are out. Make sure that you have a good view of the sett entrances. And most of all, make sure that the wind isn't blowing from you to the sett. Also think about whether or not the badgers might see you. Although their eyesight is not good, they can detect shapes, and the movement of shapes, quite well. You should therefore try to avoid being silhouetted against the skyline. If you are watching from a position by a tree, stand in front of it so that your shape blends in with it, rather than standing behind the tree and sticking your head out to see the sett.

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Picture credits

The Eurasian badger photo 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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