Here are a few things that I learned in my research of Badgers that pertains to our club athletes.
- 'The badger can run at 16-19mph for short periods of time.' In other words, they can run fast but they choose not to.
- 'Badgers have rather short, wide bodies, with short legs for digging'. Um, that describes me and half our club.....
- 'When a badger is attacked, it also uses vocalizations. It hisses, growls, squeals and snarls. It also releases an unpleasant musk that may drive a predator away.' If a competitor swims over you be sure to scream and fart at the same time to drive them away.
- 'Badgers tend to be aggressive and often get into fights with much larger animals.' I can see this being a problem for a few members.
- 'Badgers can swim, but will usually avoid doing so unless it's absolutely necessary.' The 'absolutely necessary' usually occurs two seconds before the swim start.
- 'Badgers do not hibernate but do become less active in the winter, particularly during very cold periods when they may stay in their burrows for days on end.' Oh, that's why we don't see anyone from December to March.
- 'Despite their relatively slow speed above ground, they can cover great distances when they want to.' Sounds about right. Anyone up for a LSD?
- 'Badgers bury their droppings'. Not sure about this one.
Sources:
http://www.ontariobadgers.org/biology.html
http://www.nhptv.org/natureworks/americanbadger.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Badger
