American Badger - Life Cycle

Life Cycle

Badgers are normally solitary animals for most of the year, but are thought to expand their territories in the breeding season to seek out mates. Males may breed with more than one female. Mating occurs in late summer and early fall. American badgers experience delayed implantation. Pregnancies are suspended until December or as late as February. Young are born from late March to early April. Litters range from one to five young, averaging about three.

Badgers are born blind, furred, and helpless. Eyes open at four to six weeks. The female feeds her young solid foods prior to complete weaning, and for a few weeks thereafter. Young American badgers first emerge from the den on their own at five to six weeks old. Families usually break up and juveniles disperse from the end of June to August; young American badgers leave their mothers as early as late May or June. Juvenile dispersal movements are erratic.

Most female American badgers become pregnant for the first time after they are a year old. A minority of females four to five months old ovulate and a few become pregnant. Males usually do not breed until their second year.

Major causes of adult American badger mortality include, in order, automobiles, farmers (by various methods), sport shooting, and fur trapping. Large predators occasionally kill American badgers. Yearly mortality has been estimated at 35% for populations in equilibrium. The average longevity in the wild is 9–10 years and the record is 14 years; a captive American badger lived at least 15 years and five months.