Badger Survey – Habitat & Sett assessment, Activity/Monitoring & Bait Marking

The badger is one of the most loved animals in the UK and at the same time one of the most persecuted! It is the largest land carnivore in the UK and its main food source is worms!

Badgers and their setts are protected under the following UK legislation:

Wildlife & Countryside Act (as Amended) 1981: Schedule 6
Badger Protection Act 1992

To summarise, you would be breaking the law by;

intentionally capture, kill or injure a badger
damage, destroy or block access to their setts
disturb badgers in their setts
treat a badger cruelly
deliberately send or intentionally allow a dog into a sett
bait or dig for badgers

You are also breaking the law by doing any of the following;

have or sell a badger, or offer a live badger for sale
have or possess a dead badger or parts of a badger (if you got it illegally)
mark or attach a marking device to a badger

Sett location surveys and associated signs of badgers can be done all year round but it is better in the spring or autumn as the foliage in their habitat will be reduced and therefore increasing visibility and accurate results. If badger setts and/or field signs of badgers are detected on the project site and including within 1km of the periphery of the development site then further surveys will take place. Bait marking is the survey used to distinguish the territories that each badger social group use. This creates a picture of their sett use and distribution in and around the project site. If the setts are active and your proposals would result in offending activities, a development license can be gained providing the cause is justified.

If the setts are active and your proposals would result in an illegal activity, licenses can be gained providing the cause is justified. Sometimes where all alternatives have been exhausted then, under license a sett can be blocked by 1-way gates and if needed an artificial sett created.

Survey Methods;

Habitat assessment
Scoping survey to evaluate the project site and surrounding landscape and look for signs of badger presence.

Activity surveys and sett monitoring
This involves usually using a CCTV monitoring system and other forms such as placing sand and ‘sticky sticks’ near the sett entrance to determine presence/absence.

Bait marking surveys / territory mapping
Placing food parcels incorporated with plastic beads around setts within a 1km radius of the project site can determine which badger setts are active and badger clans’ territories.