From the files of Donald R. Kirk:
Part 3. Watching the Badger
Eight or ten feet to the side of the badger a Belding ground squirrel pops out of a burrow. Knowing that these squirrels have two or more entrances to their tunnels, I assume that this squirrel has escaped its attacker. The badger has disappeared, and dirt is no longer flying from the enlarged hole. In fact, the badger reappears, backing out of the burrow, chewing on the remains of a luckless squirrel.
This happens again, causing even more excitement among these pear–shaped rodents. They run back and forth, charge in and out of their burrows, give shrill alarm calls, but none of them leave the colony for refuge in the nearby forest. For them, their burrow is the place of safety, except when a badger comes to visit. The third time the badger digs into a burrow it doesn’t come out, but remains underground. This is characteristic of the animal. Its belly is full. It will probably remain in the cool burrow, resuming its activities after dark.
Just in case the badger’s stay in the burrow is short, I wait in the shade of a high willow thicket near the creek’s edge. The Belding ground squirrels have calmed down but things are not normal. They know the badger is among them. Only two or three may be seen at one time, and not for long. Briefly standing up, peering around for danger, darting into their burrows, these small animals are clearly upset. If they but knew it, they are in for a long, tense afternoon, at least from my perspective as a human. Perhaps if I were one of these ground squirrels, I would soon forget that a dangerous enemy is asleep in what was a neighbor’s burrow. In fact, this badger may stay longer. Badgers have been known to take up residence in a squirrel town, sleeping and eating their way through the whole colony until almost none are left.
While this may appear objectionable to us, and of course it must be to the squirrels, badgers are doing what comes naturally. In fact, most rodent populations tend to have high birth rates and predators such as badgers help keep those populations in check. Watching a badger is another good reason for going fishing. But I have waited long enough. The badger is not coming out. It may have moved in for the long haul. I catch a few more grasshoppers and fish on down the creek.