Snare or collar?

• by Boleyn moderator

  Does any scientist know if some honey-badgers wear collars for location-tracking or could it be a snare??
  Thanks!!

  Posted August 29, 2017 5:28 PM

• by Boleyn moderator

  This post seemed to get lost in space but I still would like to know what the honey-badger is doing. Thanks!

  Posted October 21, 2017 3:11 PM

• by MimiA scientist, moderator

  Hi - my resident honey badger expert is away until November but then I'll get her on it 😃

  Posted October 22, 2017 6:16 PM

• by Boleyn moderator

  great, thanks Mimi! 😃

  Posted October 23, 2017 5:17 PM

• by MimiA scientist, moderator

  (please feel free to remind me (again) about it 😉 )

  Posted October 23, 2017 6:04 PM

• by vittoriaestienne scientist, moderator

  Hi! and sorry for late reply 😃

  About the thing around its neck, it doesn't seem to me a radio collar. It looks to me more like a string, so possibly a snare...
  About the behavior, I don't think the scratching is necessarily associated to the string around the neck: I have seen many other camera-trap video clips where honey badgers (without anything attached to them) scratch themselves in the same way. Another explanation could be parasites, for example.

  I also saw often that they rub themselves on the ground like it happens in this video. Honey badgers are known to use scent marking to regulate their spatial and social organization, but they seem to do so chiefly by means of urine, feces, and secretion from anal glands. None of such marking behavior appear to happen in this video, to me. So maybe rubbing themselves on the ground could be a way to scratch themselves as well..

  Posted November 23, 2017 10:52 AM

• by MimiA scientist, moderator

  Thanks @vittoriaestienne ! 😄

  Posted November 23, 2017 11:09 PM

• by Boleyn moderator

  Very interesting, thank you Vittoria!

  Although it might be a snare I'm glad it doesn't seem to be too much affected by it. 😃

  Posted November 24, 2017 12:32 PM