Badger Vs Fox: The Battle of the Mustelids

Badgers and foxes are very well-known animals. Most people see these animals in their daily life in the surrounding of their local areas. You might know a lot of things about them but still, there are plenty of things that most people don’t know about these animals. In this article, we are going to dissect this badger vs fox relationship and will let you know how both of these animals give and take or encounter each other.

Badgers and foxes: an uncomfortable relationship

Badgers and foxes are nocturnal animals and like to live in underground tunnels. They mostly reside in the countryside or open areas. A time comes when they have to encounter each other. Sometimes, they also live side by side in very large underground tunnels. In this case, they remain apart at a reasonable distance.

Badgers usually make very large setts which are interconnected through several tunnels and have many entrances and these entrances might be as many as hundreds of entrances. In this case, you can find the badgers at one end of the tunnel and the fox at the other end of the tunnel. There might be some other animals like rabbits in between them.

In most cases, both badgers and foxes like to maintain a respectful distance from each other despite sharing the neighborhood. Foxes are more fearful of encounters than badgers because both know badger would be the ultimate victor if a fight happen between them. People have found the badly composed bodies of foxes in the badger’s sett which most probably would have been killed by the badger.

Badgers and foxes might maintain a distance from each other but both like to attack the cubs of each other. It is not just the foxes who are in danger from adult badgers but also cubs of badgers who remain in danger from the adult foxes.

Fox eats badgers remaining food

During the early hours of the morning, the fox moves from one badger tunnel to another in search of food that the badger left behind. There are fewer chances that the badgers would leave anything behind but the fox is a very optimistic animal and still go from one den to another.

They might not get any food but sometimes they encounter a badger and then it runs away because the fox knows that badger could be extremely dangerous especially in the early hours of the morning as it is the sleeping time of badgers and they don’t like to be disturbed by anyone.

Are badgers afraid of a fox?

No, badgers don’t need to be afraid of foxes. Badgers are not very much concerned about the presence of foxes in their vicinity. However, badger cubs could be nervous in the presence of foxes. Both badgers and foxes were seen many times while eating peanuts.

They initially tolerate each other for several hours. If badgers feel any danger, then they might attack foxes but in most cases, foxes run away. Badgers show a very remarkable speed in chasing down foxes but foxes are also very quick and agile animals and there is very little chance that foxes could get caught.

Are badger cubs afraid of a fox?

Badgers might not be concerned about the presence of foxes in their vicinity but the babies of badgers feel very nervous in the presence of foxes around them. In the presence of foxes, cubs don’t come out and spend most of their time inside the ground until they think there is no threat outside for them. However, if cubs become adults then they don’t fear foxes and can easily handle foxes.

Do badgers attack fox dens with cubs inside?

European badgers have a very friendly relationship with the foxes. They have a very symbiotic relationship with each other and do a lot of give and take with each other. Foxes provide scrape food to badgers while badgers keep the shared den neat and clean in return.

But American badgers are not friendly in nature. They are actually fossorial carnivores and catch their underground prey by digging and scouting. Fox might not be their main prey but they don’t show any reluctance while attacking the fox cubs in their dens. Badgers are very aggressive animals and it is extremely difficult for the foxes to keep them at bay.

Red foxes mainly reside in very close families. Both male and female badgers give parental care to their cubs. They provide them with food and also defend their dens from predators. Both male and female foxes do their best to keep the badgers away from their dens but in the end, they have to give up or get killed.

Badger vs fox: Some strange facts about badgers and foxes

You might know a lot of things about badgers and foxes but still, there are a lot of things that you might have missed about them. Let me give you an overview of some strange facts about badgers and foxes.

Foxes are solitary

Foxes belong to the Canidae family. Other members of this family include wolves, jackals, and dogs. They don’t like to live in packs or group form. During the early days of their life, they might live in small groups or families like skulks but overall they like to hunt and sleep alone.

Badgers also live in social groups

Badgers are known for being solitary in nature but it has also been observed sometimes badgers also like to live in social groups named “cete”.  However, most of the time they live alone and move from one den to another. It has been estimated that 10 to 30 badgers live in the one cete.

They also share some jobs like digging and cleaning while living together. They release their special smell while living together and mark their own territory.

Foxes hunt with the help of the earth’s magnetic field

Many animals like sharks, turtles, and birds have a very close connection with the earth’s magnetic field. Foxes utilize this connection and hunt down their prey. Foxes use the earth’s magnetic field as a “ring of shadow” and when the sound of the prey is lined up with a ring of shadow, foxes immediately attack.

Kitten fox has just a weight of 3 pounds

The fennec fox is very small in size and mainly resides in the Sahara Desert. Their size is the same as the size of a kitten. But they have very long ears and creamy coats for extra protection against the burning heat of the desert. The long ears are highly helpful in hearing the voices of prey and radiating the heat of their bodies. It keeps them very cool. The paws of foxes are also covered with fur and they can easily walk on the hot sand.

Badgers always keep their dens neat and clean

Badgers are extremely neat and clean creatures. They always keep their sett neat and clean. For this purpose, they have also made latrines outside of their houses and never defecate in their setts. They also don’t bring food inside their territory and eat it all where they find it.

Foxes can easily survive extreme cold

Foxes mainly reside in the northernmost part of the hemisphere and they adapt themselves in such a way that they can easily survive even in the harshest cold weather. They don’t shiver until the temperature reaches as low as minus 70 degrees. The white coat of the foxes also acts as a camouflage against predators. The color of their coat also changes with the change of season. Sometimes, the color of the coat becomes brown or grey which blends them with rocks and dirt.

Conclusion

If you have gone through this article, then you must have gotten to know that there is a highly uncomfortable and confusing relationship between badgers and foxes. They are neighbors but they also fight a lot. They don’t care about the cubs of each other and most of the time target the cubs because these are the most vulnerable.

However, if the fight happens between them then the badger has the upper hand as badgers are highly tough and aggressive animals while foxes might fight to the bitter end but they would lose the fight in the end. It has also been seen several times that the badgers target the cubs of foxes even in the presence of their mother. Foxes try to resist at their best but they could not withstand the pernicious tactics of badgers and ultimately give up.