58 ANIMAL LIFE OF THE BRITISH ISLES. 



evening, the occupant may be seen to put out his head and, 

 elevating his snout, sniff at the air to ascertain whether it bears 

 any enemy taint. If all is well the Badger emerges, perhaps 

 followed by the cubs ; and they follow the well-worn tracks that 

 their feet have hardened, and hunt for food. St. John says: 

 " Eggs are his delight, and a partridge's nest with seventeen or 

 eighteen eggs must afford him a fine meal, particularly if he 

 can surprise and kill the hen-bird also ; snails and worms 

 which he finds above ground during his nocturnal rambles are 

 likewise included in his bill of fare." 



In winter the Badger retires to a specially deep chamber, 

 excavated below the nursery apartment, and prepared in 

 autumn by bedding it with fallen leaves which ferment and 

 keep up a moist warmth. The passages are blocked to keep 

 out unwelcome visitors as well as cold, and when the cold 

 renders food scarce the family retires and settles down to a 

 long sleep. In any short spell of mild weather the Badgers 

 will emerge and see what is to be picked up. The cubs taken 

 young are easily tamed, and in response to kind treatment show 

 a considerable amount of attachment to their owners. Happily 

 for our national reputation, the brutal custom it was called a 

 "sport" of badger-baiting has long been a thing of the past. 

 Commending itself, as it did, very strongly to certain elements 

 in our society, it is probable that it may have continued much 

 longer but for the growing difficulty in obtaining victims. 



The Badger's dental formula is : i ff, c\,p^, m\ = 38. The 

 minute first premolar in each jaw is frequently shed early, and 

 may be missing from any adult skull examined. 



Although the Badger is a distinctly local species, it is widely 

 distributed in Britain and Ireland. In the latter country, where 

 it is common, Badger hams are not an unknown delicacy in 

 rustic larders. In Europe it extends from the south of Sweden 

 to Italy. 



