Yes, those are indeed the charming words that people use to describe the honey badger, a tiny creature with unparalleled audacity!
In the African savannah, no animal is shocked to witness a tiny, two-toned honey badger, about the size of a dog, engaging in a fierce brawl amidst a pride of lions or even confronting a cobra. It’s not because such scenes occur daily, but rather because the local wildlife has become accustomed to the honey badger’s bold nature!
Oh, hello, I’m the honey badger.
If there were a competition for the “most daring” creature on the planet, the honey badger would surely be named with great honor. It’s no exaggeration to say that when Mother Nature created this species, she might have forgotten to measure properly, resulting in their rather… eccentric personality. Do not be fooled by the honey badger’s innocent face and humble gait; they are truly fierce and behave in ways that often astonish humans!
What are you looking at? Have you never seen a honey badger?
According to natural genealogy, the honey badger is related to weasels, but unlike their odorous relatives, honey badgers possess a remarkable audacity and intelligence. Which animal dares to fight lions and venomous snakes without a hint of fear? Which one devises clever plans to climb trees and steal prey from leopards? Which one knows how to track down beehives by following honey-hunting birds? Which one gets bitten by a venomous snake, appears to be dead, but simply takes a nap and wakes up completely fine?
The answer is solely one name: honey badger! It sounds sweet and adorable, but in reality, they are named after their favorite food, honey. Honey badgers can be found in Africa, Southwest Asia, and the Indian subcontinent. They prefer to dig underground dens and usually live alone, although they can also be seen hunting in pairs during mating season.
Typically, other species have lighter fur on their bellies and darker fur on their backs for easier camouflage, but my badger prefers a rebellious style, okay?
Do you see my “stylish” two-toned fur, moms? Exclusive “Pretty Badger”, not to be confused with Pretty Banh!
Honey badgers are quite aggressive, so except when they are forced to fight large predatory animals, they mostly engage in playful brawls just for fun! Though honey badgers have relatively short legs, they are incredibly strong, with sharp claws ready to engage in a duel rather than fleeing instinctively.
At Chobe National Park in Botswana, visitors have witnessed honey badgers “going solo”, turning from prey to predator in the blink of an eye while battling a giant python and wild dogs simultaneously. To escape death, the honey badger had no choice but to retaliate, ultimately turning the python into its meal.
Honey badgers don’t know how to spell “diet”, so they devour anything meaty
The fighting spirit of honey badgers is tenacious and strong, as they rarely find themselves “outmatched” despite their weight being just over ten kilograms. They are very agile and remarkably intelligent. There have been reports of a single honey badger fending off as many as six lions without sustaining even a single hair out of place!
It seems the big cats fear honey badgers, as those black and white creatures are akin to “Chí Phèo” in the animal kingdom! No one can bully a honey badger; even humans find it challenging to contend with their stubbornness.
Are you hitting me? You’re shouting that loud?
Be rude, and karma will catch up with you soon!
Because they dream of being “dominant,” honey badgers need to sunbathe for vitamin D to prevent rickets and stay strong!
Due to their passion for stealing honey, nature has bestowed upon honey badgers skin as thick as armor, especially around their necks, which can reach up to 6mm thick, so getting stung by bees is no problem. They have relatively small eyes and tiny ears hidden beneath their thick fur. As the elders say, it’s no surprise that they are “like thieves and rogues.”
Although honey badgers are seen as “rogues” in the wild and are not considered endangered or in need of conservation, scientists are highly interested in them due to their peculiar resistance to venom. Honey badgers love to eat various insects, turtles, reptiles… and especially snakes, which is why they often get bitten. However, honey badgers can withstand the venom of highly poisonous species, such as the Gaboon viper. When bitten, they may faint but will regain consciousness in about two hours, returning to normal activity as if nothing had happened.
A mother honey badger carries her cub across the dry grasslands in Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa.
While honey badgers often appear quite “brash”, they can display tenderness, especially when a female honey badger gives birth and cares for her young. The lifespan of honey badgers in the wild is relatively high, around 7 years, whereas in captivity, it can exceed 20 years.
They are famous for their fearlessness, showing no concern for threats from any beasts, even earning a spot in the Guinness Book of Records as one of the most dangerous animals in the wild. It’s quite curious what would happen if a honey badger were kept as a pet!
