Cub Diary

On the 22nd of April 2009 we got our first view of the cubs. This page follows their development. It starts with the adults mating because the female usually mates shortly after giving birth, so we can assume that our cubs were born around the end of January, which is usual for badgers. 
18/02/09 Mating, following some bottom rubbing (scent marking), edited as it took 24 minutes in "real time"

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22/04/09 New Arrivals!

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The first view 

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and there's more 
At last after 3 years of watching we have been rewarded with baby badgers! They came out at 12:28 and spent 12 minutes outside the sett.
23/04/09 Day 2

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The cubs came out at 23.06  and only spent 1.5 minutes outside last night, but one of them came a little further 
24/04/09 Day 3
Out at 12.01 for 7 minutes
25/04/09 Day 4
Not much activity from the cubs outside the sett last night, a brief view of one of the cubs at 9.20pm and another at 11.30pm. The adults were coming and going as usual and bringing some bedding back. A couple of foxes went past as well.
26/04/09 Day 5
The adults were coming and going as usual, but no sign of the cubs
27/04/09 day 6

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Cubs out for about a minute. The adults made several trips collecting bedding
28/04/09 day 7
No activity from the cubs last night. The adults out and about as usual, one not returning until it was starting to get light at 5.30am
29/04/09 day 8
No activity from the cubs again last night, but it was a cold night. It seems the mother only brings the cubs out on a warm still night!
30/04/09 Day 9
The cubs were back out again last night for 20 minutes around midnight  and then again at 3.30am for another 15 minutes
1/5/09 Day 10

Out a bit more last night and starting to get playful, and trying to get a feed while mum is trying to have a good scratch
2/5/09 Day 11


The cubs were out for another couple of sessions. They went a bit further last night disappearing off to the left of the camera for 5 minutes. Adults collected some bedding, and a spider spun a web in front of the camera! 
3/05/09 Day 12

a bit of rough love?
04/05/09 Day 13

Cubs out again, the mother is still being quite rough with them! A local cat almost ran into one of the returning adults later as well.
05/05/09 Day 14

Exploring the bit nearest the camera
06/06/09 Day 15

A bit of over zealous grooming!
08/05/09 Day 17

Being a bit rough again, maybe those cubs get a bit annoying at times?
09/05/09 Day 18

Badgers mark each other with scent glands on the their bottoms. This helps them recognise other members of their family, so its important that the mother gives her cubs "the right smell". It looks a bit like she is just sitting on the cubs head though!
10/05/09 Day 19

A mothers duties include chasing off any intruders
11/05/09 Day 20

The cubs didn't spend so much time out last night, maybe because it was quite windy. The mother did make several trips to collect bedding. It only took about a minute to collect the bedding so she must be getting it from quite close by
12/05/09 Day 21

The cubs are starting to go further afield now, and not staying so close to mum
12-05-2009 Day 22
When I got home I noticed on the camera that the badgers were out, see below

I crept down to the bottom of the garden. I could hear some nosies and looked down the bank behind the greenhouse. One of the cubs ran from left to right (away from the sett) then shortly after the mother and a cub ran the other way. The second cub was a bit behind. There was enough light from the building next door to see them, but not very clearly.

When I got back in the house I could see that they seemed a bit wary (see above) before they went back into the sett so they must have picked up my scent. The mother soon came back out though so they can't have been too worried.
15-05-2009 Day 25

Out on their own, in the rain as well.
I will be moving the camera nearer the house soon to see what the cubs get up to in the rest of the garden.
19-05-2009 Day 29

The cubs are staying out longer and going further afield. I will be moving the camera from the sett entrance to nearer the house soon so that we can see if they are coming up to the house where we will be able to look out and see them.
Day 32 21-05-2009

The cubs are definitely growing up. They are spending much more time outside, and there mum is now happy to leave them there and go off collecting bedding etc. When they first emerged the mother stayed with them and they were only out for a couple of minutes.
On the threshold 11-06-09

I have been gradually moving the camera up the garden in the last week or so and been putting peanuts out to encourage the badgers to come closer to the house so that we can see them. I have now got the camera outside the conservatory door and the badgers came right up to it last night (within a foot of where I had been an hour earlier, if only I had waited up). Interestingly the mother seems to leave the peanuts for the cubs to find. She must be teaching them to forage
A few days later on a warm evening I lay in the conservatory with the doors open, a table lamp in the window illuminating the top step and the cubs came right up to where I was lying. They were within a foot of me just the other side of the the door still close enough to stroke! It was quite tempting but I resisted, but I got a really good view!





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