American Badger (Mammals of Coal Oil Point Reserve)

American Badger

Taxidea taxus

Summary ²

American badgers, Taxidea taxus, are found in Canada, the western and central United States, northern Mexico, and southwestern British Columbia (1). In California, American badgers can be found anywhere from the mountains to the coast, and prefer to live in open grassland, chaparral, forest, and desert habitats (2). Along with their stocky, low-lying bodies, squat legs, and short tails, American badgers can be identified by their coloration and large claws used for digging. Their fur ranges between gray, yellow-brown, and red-brown. American badgers also have black patches on each side of their head, a white throat and chin, and a white stripe running from the snout along the back. On average, American badgers are 0.52–0.88 m (1.7–2.9 ft) in length from head to tail. American badgers are highly secretive and solitary animals (3). Known for tearing up the ground, American badgers may create and hide in a different den each day. When hunting, American badgers dig into ground burrows in pursuit of their primary food source, ground-dwelling rodents like squirrels and gophers (1).

Coal Oil Point Reserve Facts ²

At Coal Oil Point Reserve, American badgers have historically been recorded at the reserve but are currently believed to have been extirpated. Historic habitat may have included coastal scrub and grassland.

References ²

Fire Effects Information System. (1996). Taxidea taxus. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service. www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/animals/mammal/tata/all.html
Shefferly, N. (1999). Taxidea taxus. Animal Diversity Web. https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Taxidea_taxus/v
Kays, R. W., & Wilson, D. E. (2009). Mammals of North America (2nd ed.). Princeton University Press.

Sources and Credits

More Info

iNat Map

Occurrencestatus mammal	extirpated
Establishmentmeans mammal	native

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American Badger

Summary 2

Coal Oil Point Reserve Facts 2

References 2