Honey badger
| Honey badger Temporal range: middle Pliocene – Recent | |
|---|---|
| In Kruger National Park, South Africa | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Carnivora |
| Family: | Mustelidae |
| Subfamily: | Mellivorinae |
| Genus: | Mellivora |
| Species: | M. capensis |
| Binomial name | |
| Mellivora capensis (Schreber, 1776) | |
| Ratel distribution
Extant (resident) | |
The honey badger (Mellivora capensis), also known as the ratel (/ˈrɑːtəl/ or /ˈreɪtəl/), is a mammal widely distributed in Africa, Southwest Asia, and 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 living species in the genus Mellivora and in the mustelid subfamily Mellivorinae. Despite its name, the honey badger does not closely resemble other badger species; instead, it bears more anatomical similarities to weasels. It is primarily a carnivorous species and has few natural predators because of its thick skin, strength and ferocious defensive abilities.
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