Its body length rarely exceeds 70 cm, and its weight is no more than 15 kg. The height of the animal is about 30 cm. The tail is no more than 24 cm long.
The way of life of this animal in the wild has been little studied. Life expectancy information is not accurate or reliable.
Who is he?
1. The population of the honey badger is sharply declining
Given the rapid growth in the population of the African continent, honey badgers have already disappeared from the northwestern provinces of Gauteng, Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. There is not enough land left for the breeding of the honey badger. The honey badger's cocky behavior has led to a conflict with one enemy they cannot outsmart: a human. Wires, fences, and sheds can't keep the honey badger. Therefore, they are usually killed or poisoned by beekeepers and farmers.
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2. Honey badgers are incredibly intelligent
The honey badger has a huge brain for its size. They can open doors, unwrap wires, and climb into closets. They are one of the few creatures on Earth known to use a variety of tools. The honey badger can roll the log to climb over the fence. They are smart enough to follow honeyguard birds and find hives in which they eat larvae and honey.
3. Honey badgers eat snakes
But why does the honey badger choose such a dangerous prey and does not avoid poisonous snakes like more intelligent mammals? Snakes are an excellent source of meat and there is very little competition for them. They are also relatively slow and not overly cautious prey for the honey badger.
Poison is still a formidable weapon: there are over 100 proteins that affect various life mechanisms in the body of a bitten animal. Honey badgers have no defense against all of them: instead, like mongooses, their defenses are mostly focused on alpha neurotoxins, which paralyze the muscles used for breathing. Thus, even if he is bitten (which is happening and has been recorded), he at least does not suffocate or die after being bitten.
4. Honey badgers are invincible, and nature is pragmatic
The honey badger has managed to become the most fearless animal in the world. They are tough, impressive, and unbeatable. And nature is pragmatic: larger predators avoid attacking smaller predators, unless they are desperate (or young and inexperienced) lions or leopards) In nature, death from infection or from hunger due to temporary trauma that does not allow catching prey for several days is a reality.
And the honey badger looks especially unattractive on this scale of nature: they are small and skinny. However, they are evil and dangerous, guaranteed to do a lot of harm, even if they die in the end. Thus, they carry a huge risk and small reward to any large predator such as a lion or leopard. Are you going to attack a little predator where you are guaranteed to be exhausted and injured? No, thanks.
5. Thick skin is a huge advantage of the honey badger
They have very thick skin - about 0.6 cm and a strong, smooth protective coat. The honey badger's skin is also quite loose, which allows him to turn slightly within its limits, this ability is useful when he finds himself in the paws of a predator. He can simply flip his body over and hit the face of a predator with claws and sharp teeth - a high price for such a modest prey.
6. Teeth, jaws and claws
They have sharp teeth and incredibly powerful jaws that can break bones. The jaws are even strong enough to rip open a turtle's shell and eat it. The claws are also large and highly functional: they can dig quickly into hard ground. It takes them several minutes to dig a hole deep enough to hide from unwanted attention or excessive heat, or to get food out of the ground.
