Meles meles –Badger

The badger is a species of the family Mustelidae. It is a strong animal of white, black to grey colour, with a small head, black eyes and short tail. It reaches a weight of up to 15 kg. The badger feeds mainly on small mammals that live on the ground;they are active at night, and find prey thanks to the well-developed sense of smell, sight and hearing. They have well-developed front legs and claws, and they use the tunnels they dig in search of prey.

They live on their own, and during the mating season males and females increase their territories in search of a partner. Badgers mate in late summer or early fall. In spring, the females give birth to usually 1 to 5 young badgers in the underground ditch covered with grass. The young are born blind and helpless, so females feed, nurture and protect them for another 5 to 6 weeks. They spend most of the winter resting, though they do not really hibernate.

Within the Galichica National Park, it lives in natural and semi-natural grassland ecosystems, as well as in oak, beech forests and agricultural areas.