Badger need no stinking badgers!” In Europe, badgers were traditionally used to predict the length of winter. The badger is the state animal of the US state of Wisconsin and Bucky Badger is the mascot of the athletic teams at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The badger is also the official mascot of Brock University in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada; The University of Sussex, England; and St Aidan's College at the University of Durham. In 2007, the appearance of honey badgers around the British base at Basra, Iraq, fuelled rumours among the locals that British forces deliberately released "man-eating" and "bear-like" badgers
American badger weasel, otter, ferret, and wolverine. The American badger belongs to the Taxidiinae, one of three subfamilies of badgers – the other two being the Melinae (9 species, including the Eurasian badger) and the Mellivorinae (honey badger). The American badger's closest relative is the prehistoric "Chamitataxus". Recognized subspecies include: the nominate subspecies "T. t. taxus", found in central Canada and central US; "T. t. jacksoni", found in the southern Great Lakes region including southern Ontario; "T. t. jeffersoni", in British Columbia and the western US; and "T. t. berlandieri", in the southwestern US and northern Mexico. Ranges of subspecies overlap considerably,