European badger

Scientific name: Meles meles

How weight is recorded: Whole weight

Field notes

Appearance

Stocky, powerfully built with a distinctive black and white facial mask, black body with white underparts and legs. Muscular, squat frame with short legs and a relatively short tail; males noticeably larger and heavier than females.

Size and weight

Males 24–35 kg, females 16–24 kg; body length 60–90 cm (males larger than females).

Habitat

European badgers inhabit mixed deciduous and coniferous woodlands, scrubland, and grasslands from lowlands to moderate mountain elevations. They require areas with suitable soil for burrow construction and proximity to open foraging grounds.

Distribution

Widespread across Europe from Britain and Scandinavia to Mediterranean margins and Russia. Prefers mixed woodland and hedgerow habitats with good drainage and moderate human disturbance.

Diet

Primarily earthworms, supplemented by small mammals, insects, amphibians, berries, and carrion; diet varies seasonally with prey availability.

Behaviour

Strictly nocturnal and crepuscular; highly social, living in stable family groups within permanent sett systems. Active year-round with reduced movement in harsh winter conditions; territorial and sedentary.

Hunting tips

Look for setts (multi-entrance burrow systems with large mounds of excavated earth), latrines with distinctive cubic droppings, and worn paths connecting sett to feeding areas. Approach upwind during dusk/night hours using terrain folds and vegetation for cover. Move slowly and pause frequently; badgers have poor vision but keen hearing and smell—ground-based stalking near sett entrances yields best observation.

Whole weight

This species is logged by whole weight — the animal weighed entire, as taken.

Where it is hunted

Listed as huntable in 28 countries in Huntify.

Names in other languages

These field notes are general species knowledge, not legal advice. Always check the current seasons, quotas and firearm rules where you hunt.