European badger (Meles meles) is a predator from the family Mustelidae (Mustelidae), found in most temperate regions of Europe and western Asia. The Mustelidae family has only 5 representatives in Israel, but worldwide there are more than 50 mustelid species, giving it the title of the largest family in the order. Relative to how common it is, the number of observations of badgers in Israel is very low: they are active at night and are seen only rarely. In many places in Europe the situation is different. The species is considered a welcome guest in house yards, maintaining good neighborly relations with people. Badger families are known to live in a complex burrow system in house yards in Europe, which they maintain and in which they raise successive generations for decades.

The genus Badger has undergone many changes over the last decade, and at least three different species are now recognized in it. As of now, all the badgers found in Israel answer to the name Meles meles canescens. For more information online on this matter, a search can be used (Wilson & Reeder 2005).

In Israel, the European badger is found in most of the Mediterranean region and also penetrates desert areas. In the past, several isolated populations were known at a few sites in the Negev, and it is unclear whether they still exist there. The nocturnal lifestyle does indeed make badgers difficult to observe, but they often leave behind clear field signs: badgers dig and forage by rooting in the soil, and it is possible to distinguish badger digs from porcupine digs, for example: among the species whose tracks may resemble badger tracks.

Recently, several observations of badgers were reported, including one photographed: a badger that was caught in a trap set up in order to catch cats, at Kibbutz Beit Alfa (Harod Valley). The picture is admittedly not pleasant, but it is presented here as a direct continuation of the discussion that previously took place regarding the way of life of badgers in inhabited areas in Israel.