BEAKS 49 



maiufcaiiied by a mofcher badger in her family, says : 

 *^ I have seen her turn back and shake severely a 

 cub that would insist on following its dam away from 

 home, the poor little chap hobbling a retreat, very 

 injured at heart, stopping to perch on its haunches 

 and gaze wistfully in the direction its mother had 

 gone." 



You have only to look at a badger's skull to realise 

 the force of his grip. The lower jaw of all the other 

 mammals is attached to the upper by cartilage, and, 

 when the soft parts are taken away the lower jaw 

 is separate from the skull, but you cannot separate 

 the lower jaw of the badger without breaking the 

 bones, because the surface of the skull at the hinge 

 (glenoid surface) grows round and grips that part of 

 the lower jaw (condyle) which meets it. With these 

 jaws a badger can hang on to the death and grip 

 with such force that his teeth invariably meet. Thus, 

 though a small animal, he is a formidable antagonist 

 when at bay. 



Badgers are hunted and trapped in various ways, 

 sometimes by digging them out, sometimes by placing 

 a sack at the entrance of the den with a noose at the 

 mouth when the occupant of the den is known to be 

 abroad. He is then hunted back to the set with 

 terriers, and as he rushes into the sack the noose is 

 drawn. Or the badger hunter goes out with terriers 

 and armed with badger tongs with which to grasp 

 the badger and put him into the sack when the dogs 

 have pinned him. These tongs have wooden handles 

 and iron heads. Brock is too clever to be easily 

 caught in traps. Many instances are known of his 



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