What Does A Badger Sound Like? (With Examples)

In this guide, we are going to discuss the different types of sounds that you might expect to come from a badger. Badgers are small animals that are very vocal when they need to be!

What Does a Badger Sound Like?

Badgers can make more than a dozen different sounds at any given time. These noises can include growls, snarls, yelps, barks, and other similar sounds. Badgers use these sounds to communicate throughout their life in the wilderness. Badgers also use mating calls and sounds during mating season.

Making noise isn’t the only way that they communicate with each other. A badger can also use its body language to communicate and may rely on any of its senses to help pass the message across to others of its kind. It can certainly be challenging to detect a badger based on its sounds alone, especially since most badgers are nocturnal and only come out at night when many other animals are also outside and making various sounds. 

What Sounds Does a Badger Make?

Let’s focus on some of the sounds that you might hear from a badger that is roaming out in the wilderness. Badgers can remain fairly quiet during their adventures, but every now and then they make unique sounds that can help you to identify them.

Growling Sounds

Badgers may be forced to growl at any potential predators if they believe they might be in immediate danger. With the hopes of deterring any potential harmful predators, badgers use a lengthy growl to try and intimidate other nearby animals. Badgers don’t growl often, but when they do, it should be used as a warning sign for the nearby predator.

Barking Sounds

Badgers don’t exactly bark like dogs. They have a very unique high-pitched bark that can be used for a couple of reasons. Just like growling, badgers can use their bark to intimidate other predators or animals. It is also common to hear multiple badgers barking if they are playing in the wilderness.

Purring Sounds

Badgers may produce purring sounds that can be hard to hear if you are quite a distance away. This sound is usually used for communication between a badger mother and her cubs. These purring sounds help to notify cubs of imminent danger or command from the mother. You may also hear a variation of the purring sounds be used as a mating call from other adult badgers as well. 

Sounds From Badger Cubs

Badger cubs have a unique collection of sounds that might seem a little bit different than the sounds that come from a mature adult badger. These cub sounds can include clucks, chirps, and yelps. 

Clucking Sounds

It is not that rare to hear a clucking sound from a badger cub. Don’t mistake this sound for one that comes from a wild bird, because these clucking sounds can sound very similar. Cubs sometimes randomly make these clucking sounds depending on their current activity. 

Chirping Sounds

Badger cubs also make chirping sounds that can sound similar to a bird. These sounds can indicate that the badger cub needs something. Sometimes badgers can use this sound to communicate to their mother that they are hungry, thirsty, or in need of some assistance. It’s pretty rare to hear chirping sounds from a badger cub, but they do happen occasionally and it’s quite unique. 

Yelping Sounds

Yelping sounds can come from mature adult badgers and badger cubs. Like most animals, yelps usually come from badgers when they are in pain or desperate need of help. A yelping sound from a badger can also indicate that the badger is fearful.

Cubs don’t usually make yelping sounds as often as mature adults, especially since a badger adult can more easily sense nearby danger. You may hear a yelping sound from a female badger during mating, although the primary usage for a yelping sound from badgers is when they are fearful or in pain. 

Badger Sounds Examples – Audio/Video

https://youtu.be/XOSmLU_cZ0I

Want to know more about badgers? Learn more here.

Why Do Badgers Scream At Night?

Badgers are most active at night. You are most likely to hear badger sounds, noises, and screams during twilight, or nighttime hours. The reason they scream can be varied. They may scream because they are alerting other badgers of danger, or they themselves may be in danger. Source.

The most obvious reason they scream at night is because of their sexual activity. When mating season comes, they use screams and other noises to alert females to their mating calls. Their mating calls can be a variety of sounds as well from screams, and a mating type of “churr.”

Do Badgers Growl and Hiss?

Badgers do not only growl, as we have learned, they also hiss. When a badger feels threatened or that danger is nearby, it will start to growl and hiss to try and deter the predator that is nearby. As another form of defense, they will also emit a musky odor.

So if you hear hisses and growls in the wild and smell a musky smell, then chances are you have invaded a badger’s territory. Try to avoid contact with wild animals like badgers, if you are badger watching, do it from a distance.

See our article for Are Badgers Dangerous here.

Badgers communicate with sound just as they do with body language. These sounds can send out a message to other animals in a split second. Badgers can make these sounds without even realizing it out of their own natural instincts. Just like any animal species that lives out in the wilderness, these sounds can be critical to their survival. Badgers need to make sounds to call for mating at the appropriate time of year. Mother badgers also need to be able to communicate with their cubs.

Did you know that badgers are related to wolverines?

See our article Badgers Vs Wolverines here.

Frequently Asked Questions