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
Honey badger known for being tough and fearless. Rugby player Nick Cummins and American football player Tyrann Mathieu are notable athletes who have received the nickname honey badger at some point in their careers. Honey badger The honey badger ("Mellivora capensis"), also known as the ratel ( or ), is widely distributed in Africa, Southwest Asia, and in the Indian subcontinent. Because of its wide range and occurrence in a variety of habitats, it is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. It is the only species in the mustelid subfamily Mellivorinae and its only genus Mellivora. Despite its name,