Honey badger Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park

Honey badger

Mellivroa capensis

Behavior and diet

The honey badger (Mellivroa capensis) is an opportunistic carnivore that eats a wide range of animals, including: lizards, termites, animal eggs, snakes and even smaller crocodiles. Honey badgers are also attracted to honey bees, but not for the honey. They seek out the larvae and can pose a real nuisance to beekeepers. Honey badgers hunt by locating their victims with their acute sense of smell. They will then dig with their razor-sharp claws to extract their prey. They are notorious for their pugnacious and fearless personality, and have been known to take on animals many times their own size. The gestation period of the honey badger is six to eight weeks, with the female bearing an average of one to two young at one time.