You have probably heard the term, “Bad-Ass like a Honey Badger” before. If not, well you’ll be pretty interested in these kinds of creatures. Honey badgers are these fairly long-bodied animals that have a distinctly thick-set of waxy hair on their backs. Its skin is extremely loose which allows the badgers to become flexible. They can survive gunshot bullets, venom from any poisonous snake, and have teeth that can break a tortoise’s shell – wait, what?!
Mellivora capensis, honey eater of the cape. Placed in one of the highest categories of threat from the South African Red Data List that lists endangered species in South Africa, honey badgers are killed for several reasons: traditional medicine, pelts (fur) for sale, bushmeat trade, disturbance and the invaders of honey beehives. That’s where the “honey” comes from in honey badgers. These specific badgers are known to invade honey beehives because of their large obsession with honey. Honey is not a part of a badger’s diet, it’s more of a treat instead. Honey farmers kill badgers by gin traps, man-made poison or hunting. The life expectancy for a honey badger is only 7 years!
So back to my question, are honey badgers a threat to humans? According to the article, The Honey Badger, conserving “the most fearless animal in the world,” it is stated that $62,500 was lost due to badgers and 2-7% of hives are lost to badgers each year in South Africa. As you already know, bees are necessary because they make it possible for food to reach your table. As an important role of pollinator, they transfer pollen and seeds from one flower to another, and pollination helps 30% of the world’s natural crops. Without beehives, we wouldn’t have honey bees, and without honey bees, humans wouldn’t have food. Honey badgers are excellent climbers, therefore no matter how high the hive is, it’s still accessible.
The badger problem is the #1 threat in Western Cape Province, Africa. At least 80% of beekeepers have seen a honey badger, but now protected under law since 2014, no one is allowed to purposely kill a honey badger. Known to be intelligent animals, they know how to play dead too. There is an unknown population of honey badgers, as they are nocturnal creatures. Zoologists and researchers have no explanation if badgers are helpful to the environment, so the bigger question is, “what would happen if badgers were to go extinct?” Under the Badger-Friendly Honey Initiative started in 2010, the goal is to minimize the conflict between badgers and bees by asking beekeepers to adopt badger-friendly methods of beehive protection. Currently, 320 beekeepers have sworn into this program and hope to have all beekeepers be under this initiative by 2020.