Honey Badger

Information and Inspirational quotes about this iconic mammal[]

Honey badger don't care. Honey Badger don't give a s#%t.

~ Randall, The crazy Honey Badger.

A stocky, robust and rather a ferocious animal, the honey badger also known as a ratel (Mellivora capensis), which is the only species within the Mellivora genus, has very distinct markings. Most of the body is covered in straight, coarse black or dark brown hairs, but a wide strip of wiry grey and white hairs, known as the mantle, runs from the crown of the head to the base of the tail in adults. On some individuals, a pure white band separates the mantle, which becomes darker with age, from the black underparts. The tail is bushy and covered in the same straight, coarse hairs of the body, and ends in a grey or white tip. The muscular, stocky neck and shoulders, together with the broad forefeet and large powerful claws, make light work of digging for small prey. The hind feet are much slighter with smaller claws. Named for its apparent taste for honey, the honey badger is often seen raiding African honeybee nests, although it is in fact also after the juicy developing grubs of the bees and not just the honey. This species is also known as the ratel, an Afrikaans word for ‘rattle’, as it is known to make a rattle-like cry.

Lifespan[]

They can live up to 24 years.

Diet[]

Their diet is omnivorous. They can eat honey and honeybee larvae. They also eat insects such as African honey bees and scorpions, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and smaller mammals, as well as roots, bulbs, berries and fruits.

Animal Intelligence[]

As Rafiki the Mandrill shaman stated that honey badgers are smart (Which is highly accurate and he is correct), despite the abysmal and bad portrayal on one of Africa's top toughest animals on earth being depicted as stupid in Ford Riley's forgettable The Lion Guard series (Which includes Bunga at least so far and is thankfully the only ratel of The Lion King franchise to be depicted that way while the first ratel introduced into the TLK series). Honey badgers have relatively big brains for their body size. They are one of the few non-primate species to use tools--widely considered a sign of intelligence in the animal kingdom.

Reproduction[]

The honey badger is thought to breed all year, with females thought to have two young per litter. Research in the southern Kalahari showed that cubs stayed with their mothers for minimum of 14 months becoming independent.

Vocalizations[]

The voice that honey badgers make is a hoarse "khrya-ya-ya-ya" sound. When mating, males emit loud grunting sounds. Cubs vocalize through plaintive whines. When confronting dogs, honey badgers scream like bear cubs.