badger

1. any of various stocky omnivorous musteline mammals of the subfamily Melinae, such as Meles meles (Eurasian badger), occurring in Europe, Asia, and North America: order Carnivora (carnivores). They are typically large burrowing animals, with strong claws and a thick coat striped black and white on the head

2. honey badger another name for ratel

Collins Discovery Encyclopedia, 1st edition © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

badger

[′baj·ər]

(design engineering)

badger plane

(engineering)

A tool used inside a pipe or culvert to remove any excess mortar or deposits.

(vertebrate zoology)

Any of eight species of carnivorous mammals in six genera comprising the subfamily Melinae of the weasel family (Mustelidae).

badger

backwater valve: installation

backwater valve

1. A tool used inside a pipe or culvert to remove excess mortar or deposits.

2. A badger plane.

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References in periodicals archive

The American Badger (Taxidea taxus) in Arkansas, with Emphasis on Expansion of Its Range into Northeastern Arkansas.

American badgers (Taxidea taxus) are mid-sized semi-fossorial mustelids and typically associate with open habitats, such as grasslands, shrub-steppe, or desert but also occur in forests, wetlands, and mountainous areas (Lindzey, 2003).

Space Use and Habitat Selection of American Badgers (Taxidea Taxus) in Southwestern Wisconsin

Adult male American badgers grow to about 2 feet long and weigh up to 20 pounds.

Although it's not common, American badgers have been known to live at altitudes as high as 12,000 feet.

AMERICAN BADGERS: FOUR-LEGGED EXCAVATORS: Interesting information you're sure to dig

Here we report observations between San Joaquin kit foxes (Vulpes macrotis mutica) and American badgers that provide further insight into the interactions between badgers and canids.

Observations of antagonistic and nonantagonistic interactions between the San Joaquin kit fox (Vulpes macrotis mutica) and the American badger (Taxidea taxus)

TABLE 1.--Resource selection of American badgers (Taxidea taxus) within study areas (second-order) and home ranges (third-order) in Illinois (n = 18; 1990-1995) and Ohio (n = 5; 2005-2007).

Badger (Taxidea taxus) resource selection and spatial ecology in intensive agricultural landscapes

On 4 August at 1518 h, the American badger stopped and scanned to the north.

American badger (Taxidea taxus) uses covert reconnaissance to ambush a black-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus)

Parsons, reported taking an American badger from Marion County on 29 November 2008.

The American badger (Taxidea taxus) in Arkansas, with emphasis on expansion of its range into northeastern Arkansas

Reduced food availability is thought to increase the size of home ranges of North American badgers (Lindzey, 1982; Minta, 1993).

Home range size and attributes for badgers (Taxidea taxus jeffersonii) in South-Central British Columbia, Canada

American badgers were trapped at burrows by placing a pair of number-three, coil-spring traps (Duke Company, West Point, Mississippi) at the mouth of burrows.

Spatial characteristics of American badgers (Taxidea taxus) in southern Texas

Four species were detected frequently enough to estimate rates of use of habitat by study area: coyote, bobcat, American badger, and gray fox.

Non-invasive methods to assess co-occurrence of mammalian carnivores

American badgers (Taxidea taxus) occur throughout the northern Great Plains (Messick, 1987) and are adapted to living in grassland habitat (Messick and Hornocker, 1981; Messick et al., 1981), which also provides cover for nesting ducks.

Foods of American Badgers in West-central Minnesota and Southeastern North Dakota During the Duck Nesting Season