Rare white badger cub ‘Elsa’ wins hearts across the country
- Badger Trust Staff Team
- Jul 20, 2022
- 5 min read
Extremely rare white badger rescued as rising UK temperatures impact native wildlife.
By May of this year, 2022 had already been ranked the sixth hottest year in Earth's history. For the UK, July is seeing temperatures reach over 40 degrees, the hottest since records began. Not only is the current heatwave dangerous for humans, but the heat also poses a significant danger to wildlife.
For badgers, the lack of rainfall throughout June had already made foraging and hydration very difficult. The dry weather coincided with newly weaned cubs emerging from their sett on the lookout for solid food. Without rainfall, however, the ground has become too hard for young badgers to forage in. Lack of food, due to the hard ground and distances to fresh water sources, can cause young cubs to quickly succumb to dehydration and/or starvation. This is just one of the reasons why Badger Groups across Britain are vital for badger protection.
A special badger rescue
In what is a remarkable discovery, on 25th June, Oxfordshire Badger Group was alerted about a very special badger in need of rescue. A member of the public called the volunteer group after finding an infant badger hiding under their wheelie bin in their garden.
Upon arrival, volunteers immediately recognised that the young badger was dehydrated and underweight and so it was vital to capture her safely so that she could receive veterinary attention. The most unique feature of this young badger, however, was that she was not the usual black and white striped variety. Instead, her fur was white from head to tail, and unlike albino badgers, her eyes were brown.
The badger, fondly named Elsa, after Disney's Frozen Princess, is an extremely rare erythristic badger. Erythristic badgers lack the pigmentation in their fur that is responsible for the black stripes synonymous with Britain's most iconic native mammal. Instead, where the black stripes would be, these areas are also white. Thus, this rare genetic mutation results in white pelage from head to tail.
Erythristic badgers are so rare that there are no statistics available to estimate their population numbers. The sightings of erythristic badgers are few and far between, and they are easily mistaken for albino rather than erythristic.
Elsa’s rehabilitation and reintroduction
Once rescued by the Oxfordshire Badger Group, Elsa was cared for by Oxfordshire Wildlife Rescue where she quickly won the hearts of staff and volunteers. A photograph of the rare white badger posted to the centre's social media received many comments from people surprised and excited to see a badger without the iconic stripes.
Whilst wooing the public with her beauty, Elsa underwent veterinary care for dehydration and a high parasitic load. The high temperatures and dry ground had left Elsa unable to forage or drink for some time, which had made her weak and susceptible to parasites. Without rescue, Elsa may not have been able to survive. Aged only 16 weeks, Elsa made very positive progress in care and was soon able to be released back to her home range after only a few short weeks of rehabilitation.
Debbie, from Oxfordshire Badger Group, who attended the rescue scene, explained:
“After a few days of treatment and care, Elsa steadily gained weight and became more feisty by the day. She was very lucky a member of the public found her and was kind enough to take the time to call for help. We are looking forward to reuniting her with her family soon.”
Elsa has now been released back to her natal clan via a soft reintroduction. This means her release took place slowly so that rescuers could ensure she was accepted back by her clan mates without issue.
The rescue team, Oxford Badger Group and Oxfordshire Wildlife Rescue, confirmed that the soft release was a great success. The release itself could not be documented given the protected nature of badgers and their setts and a need to keep their sett location private.
Badger Trust is pleased to hear of this very happy ending, particularly given the current heatwave which risks the lives of Britain’s treasured wildlife.
How to help badgers in hot weather
There's lots you can do to help badgers and other wild garden visitors in hot weather.
The best thing you can do to help wildlife during hot weather is to leave a bowl of water out in the garden so that animals such as badgers, hedgehogs, and birds, can stay hydrated. Arranging several water sources across a garden in shaded areas will offer a vital life source to wildlife during the hottest parts of the day. Dishes of water with pebbles placed in the water allow for insects such as bees and butterflies to climb out if they fall in.
How much water does a badger need?
Badgers don't require as much water as you'd expect for a large mammal as they get moisture from the food they eat. But leaving fresh water sources in the shade will benefit any visitor of feather or fur variety, especially when it's hot.
A shaded area in your garden with a bowl of fresh water could provide a lifeline for a badger in scorching weather, especially if they are too dehydrated to make it back to their sett.
Top up water at night as well, so there’s plenty of fresh water for badgers and other nocturnal wildlife.
To feed or not to feed in hot summer weather?
The favoured prey source of the badger is earthworms, but when the ground gets very dry, worms go into a state of torpor called ‘estivation’. This means that worms are impossible to come by.
If you choose to feed a hungry badger in need, please provide a natural food source – such as unsweetened fruit and nuts – or covered cat biscuits, and a bowl of fresh water.
And remember – providing food for any wild animal is a balance; supplementary feeding should be just that!
Why do you sometimes see badgers in daylight more often when it's hot?
It can be because their quest for food takes them out at times they'd normally be sleeping.
It can also be uncomfortable underground and they frequently use 'day nests'; this is where badgers lay up on bedding under a hedge or tree, sometimes in a garden or under a shed, your compost heap or down an alley.
The best thing is to leave the badger alone as it'll go when it's ready, that night in most cases.
What to do if you're worried about a badger
If you see a badger alone during the day and you’re worried it may be in distress, contact your local Badger Group or local wildlife rescue for help and advice.
Further information
Discover more about how drought affects badgers.
Read our advice on living alongside your local badgers.