Lauren Kenny – Odds
Jackie Timmins – Evens
AP Bio Chapter 41
1. This is the Honey badger! (Latin name, too)
2. While the Honey badger looks calm and mellow in this picture, they are actually very fearless
and feisty. Their species doesn’t resemble that of any other badger, but is closer to the weasel
and wolverine families. In Africa, the Honey Badger is called a “ratel,” from the Dutch word
“rattle.”
3. These animals live in a wide variety of habitats from rainforests to deserts, but normally in arid
grasslands and savannahs. They are usually found in Africa, Asia, the Arabian Peninsula, and
even as far east as India. For each habitat, there is a different subspecies of honey badger.
4. Their solitary and nomadic lifestyle has kept them off of endangered species lists. They are
normally nocturnal and prefer hunting at night.
5. Honey Badgers are omnivores and eat a variety of animals, including venomous cobras, berries,
small reptiles, insects, birds, and honey straight from the hive. The honey badger will eat all
parts of its prey, even fur, feathers, shell, and bones!
6. The Honey Badger merely passes out when it ingests deadly venom from cobras. The honey
badger is able to break into bee hives with its sharp claws and has a hide so thick that bees
cannot sting through it. Strangely, in addition to thick skin, these creatures also have loose skin.
This makes them very hard to capture by predators, even humans. Honey Badgers have strong
jaws that lock onto prey and can easily crush bones and shells, which are swallowed with the
rest of their meal.
7. Honey Badgers are very smart animals. They have been known to roll logs to cave entrances to
stand on in order to catch birds.
8. The Honey Badger has a mutualistic relationship with the honey guide. This bird guides animals
to the hive and then feeds on bee’s wax and larvae after the other animal has broken into the
hive. The badger has evolved to follow the honey guide in order to attain the delicious honey.
The Honey Badger also has a commansalistic relationship with scavengers. Jackals and vultures
often wait nearby to eat the scraps after the Honey Badger is done feeding.
9. Honey Badgers are very strong animals and have been known to savagely retaliate at animals as
big as lions when escape seems impossible. They also have a reversible pouch that emits a
strong odor which is used as an additional form of defense. The Honey badger’s contrasting coat
is used to ward off predators, too.
10. Male honey badgers become extremely territorial of the females during mating and will ward off
any other males nearby. Female honey badger accepts her partner after several days of
consideration. The cubs will be born after about 2 months, but the father doesn’t wait for them
to be born.
11. Honey badgers do not have a breeding season, and cubs are born all year. The litter size is 1-4,
and cubs will stay with their mother for at least 14 months before becoming leaving their home.
Fathers do not help in taking care of the baby cubs. Mothers transport the cubs by carrying
them in her mouth. Honey badgers in captivity live approximately 24 years.
12. Honey badgers do not have fixed dens and usually move dens every night, unless she is a
mother. Mothers move dens every 2-5 days. They are able to quickly dig holes to cover their
entire bodies for protection when predators are near. If a predator happens to get too close to a
Honey badger’s burrow, the badger will attack it, even the predator is a buffalo or warthog or
other massive animal.