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Image: A wasp nest dug out by a badger (Meles meles).
I found this former wasps' nest on North Hill, above Minehead in Somerset, several years ago. Since then, I have seen a number of other examples, in Exmoor, the Cotswolds, and Northamptonshire.
Badgers tend to attack wasp nests in late summer (July to September), when the wasp larvae are big, fat and juicy (this is written from the badger's point of view!). The badger attacks at night while the wasps are asleep, digging down to the nest and ripping it open to expose the larvae within. Adult wasps too are eaten in the process; one researcher once found 300 wasps in a badger's stomach.
The badger is protected from the stings of the wasps by its fur, which is fluffed up in excitement during the attack on the nest. The badger's nose however is vulnerable, and it seems likely that the mouth must be stung when adult wasps are eaten. This does not seem to deter the badger however. In 1905, it was recorded that badgers in Beaufort, Sussex, devoured between them 30-40 wasp nests over the course of just 2 nights!
© 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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