IV. 



THE BADGER. 



A QUEER, quaint, old-world animal ; clumsy in 

 form and bizarre in colouring, timid and shy, 

 shunning daylight, man and his works, the 

 badger, the largest of our remaining carnivora, 

 is also one of the most interesting. From its 

 rarity and secluded habits it is one of the least 

 generally known ; indeed people live for years 

 in its immediate neighbourhood without being 

 aware of the fact, unless through some acci- 

 dental occurrence. Once generally distributed 

 over the whole country, it is even to-day not 

 so uncommon as is often supposed ; although 

 doubtless a decreasing species it can hardly yet 

 be said to be verging on extinction, and is still 

 to be found, more or less sparsely, from the 

 North of Scotland to Cornwall and in many 

 parts of Ireland 



The badger is classed with the Ursidae, and 

 in some ways shows considerable affinity to 

 the bears, as for instance in his great muscular 



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