How rare is it to see a badger?

Esel wrote: »

As the badgers don't change their 'clock', traffic volume around dawn/dusk will be different after we change. This could affect the number of road deaths.

It wouldn't make that much of a difference to see an actual rise in road casualties. Srameen has already given a good explanation to why there are more Badgers killed on the roads this time of year.

I know a particular location which a came upon by chance. Was out fishing one day in a real off the beaten track, where I seldom see another fisherman, and I sort of have the river to myself. Come to think of it, I don't think I've ever met another person in all the times I've fished there. Anyway, one morning whilst sitting quietly, as you do, out pops a badger from a set on the far bank of the river. First time I've ever seen one in daylight. Watched him for best part of twenty minutes.

Since then, I've seen badgers during the daylight in the same location, a couple more times, over a number of years, but never anywhere else. Why this particular location, i dont know.

Funny I saw this thread as I saw my first "in the wild" one last week. It was in the neighbour's front garden directly across facing ours. She does leave food out the front for her cats so it's not uncommon to see one of the local foxes having a munch but I was taken aback to see this black/white striped "fox" - took a second to twig what it was. He had a good look at me while I stood there but he sprinted off a soon as I made a move. Now where we are is a small Essex town surrounded by countryside but I'd say we're the guts of a mile (in the middle of housing estate) from said countryside so I'm not sure how frequently I may see my new friend.

Back in the 90s we had one living in our garden in Shankill.
We were right beside Dart line so it may have lived in the ditch there, hell there could have been a few of them but Ö only remember seeing one. During the nights we used to hear it rummaging around looking for food I guess (before wheelie bins) we just used to have black sacks in the yard waiting for the binmen every Tuesday. Period of time where I used to be the delegate to have to clean up after the badger

I remember one morning instead of telling me to clean up the bins, my old man asked me to go out to the garden and get his shoe. ???? What???? Turns out he heard badger at the bins during the night, so he focked his shoe out the window to chase it away

whelzer wrote: »

I see them regularly enough in the phoenix park, best was summer 2017 - at dusk, a whole family scuttled past me and ran alongside the fence of the zoo for 20-30 meters before going into the zoo. I was (am still!) gobsmacked...

Fair play to them. It's bloody expensive to bring the family to the zoo these days.

Widdershins wrote: »

I've heard they are common enough but I've never seen a live bader . Clare's a badger-baiting tourism hotspot , apparently , so maybe that's why.

The main killer of badgers is the Dept. of Agriculture. The Dept. kills them to stop the spread of TB which could also be achieved by vaccinating cattle. We'd see a lot more badgers otherwise.

Common enough,

Look for paths about a foot wide, bit less, setts in sloped areas in wooded area.

Best chance is late evening on summer evening, seeing the young at play.

Staying up all night is your only chance otherwise.

Saw a badger strike a dog once, years ago, blew his lower jaw off.

New Home wrote: »

Charming.

Certainly not without its down side.

Lots of talk g about whether they will keep going till they snap a leg I do not know that but they are tough creatures and to not be interfered with.

AndrewJRenko wrote: »

I saw an Irish one once, in a garden near Herbert Park, but it was closer to the US photo than the European one - definitely more brown than black.

Camille Weak Smile wrote: »

Just on the European and American Badgers ; a number of years ago the Irish Times produced a beautiful, glossy, colour wall chart of Irish Mammals and included a copy with every paper. It was a wonderful educational tool, except that they had a lovely picture of an American Badger. An embarrassing and expensive error.

I was thinking it's a shame about the American badger in this . Those pull out posters are nice and it sounds lovely apart from that .

We have the same species as the UK, is that right ?

You could never have had Wind in the Willows with American animals ....

Rows Grower wrote: »

There seems to have been many stories of Badgers not letting go until they hear a bone break, the most popular one I heard from old fellas when I was growing up was put coal cinders in your boots and when the badger hears them being crushed he'll then let go of his bite.

Imagine walking around the countryside with cinders in your wellies on the off chance a badger jumps out and bites your ankle. Jesus fellas must have been fairly paranoid.
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I had a good cackle at this...wished I hadn't read beyond your comment , though .