Badgers are probably the UK’s most iconic and easily recognised mammals, yet, due to their shy and nocturnal habits, most people have either never seen a live badger or at best just get a glimpse in the headlights down a country lane. If, however, you would like to watch these fascinating mammals either as they emerge at the sett or as they forage and feed then please choose one of the badger watching or photography options below.

Badgers in the garden

This course is currently unavailable due to suspected persecution

Sit in the comfort of the conservatory with a mug of tea and watch as 2 or 3 badgers visit the garden and feed. This is an easy watch and you should have badgers within 3m of where you are sitting. It is a shorter watch than other options and is most suitable for families with children or for small groups who do not wish to visit woodlands after dark.
Photography is not allowed.

Price £45 for a group of up to 4

Dates are by mutual arrangement and are week nights only

Badgers in the Woodland

This is the ultimate badger watching experience, waiting on a viewing platform for badgers to emerge at dusk from their sett. Up to 9 badgers have been seen on these watches; however, the usual number is 4 or 5. Silence, as well as warm, dark clothing is required as well as a longer wait. Feeding, grooming, mating, fighting and bedding collection have all been witnessed from this viewpoint as well as other wildlife such as owls, bats, roe deer and foxes. This is more than just a badger watch this is a nocturnal, woodland experience.

Although badgers do not hibernate the best time of year for watching them in woodland runs from mid-April to mid-August.

These watches are not suitable for children under 12 years and photography is not allowed.

Price £85 for a group of up to 6

Dates are by mutual arrangement and are week nights only

Badger Photography

These are unique 1-to-1 sessions lasting over to 6 hours for photographers using Nikon or Canon DSLR cameras.
You will learn all about manual flash control as well as setting up and triggering multiple flash units. It is also essential to cover fieldcraft when dealing with badgers in order to maximise your chances of getting the shot.
Finally, you will set-up, wait and, hopefully, run your own shoot around a sett. You will not be taking hundreds of shots on this event; the aim is to take 10, maybe less, really good ones. You will learn a huge amount about photography as well as about badgers.

Price £175

Dates are by mutual arrangement and are week nights
only

Payment must be made in advance to make a booking. If you do not wish to use PAYPAL, please email and payment can be made by cheque.

Badger Biology and Observation

This is a much more detailed overview of badgers and their biology and behaviour. On the first half of this workshop we talk about badgers and track their sign throughout woodland. We shall also look at different types of badger sett and what differentiates a badger hole from that of another mammal. The second half of the workshop is a badger watch around a sett. This workshop is run on behalf of Sussex Wildlife Trust please see dates below and book on 01273 497561

Course Dates

12 May 2011, 14 May 2011, 05 June 2011, 09 June 2011, 25 June 2011, 03 July 2011

Please call Sussex Wildlife Trust to book 01273 497561

Badger watching can be a spectacular experience. However, they are sensitive animals and I would like to stress that due to their sometimes fickle nature sightings are not guaranteed. Having led over 100 badger watching events in 2009 the success rate was 100%. In 2010, it was a more difficult year and the rate of success was 92%. As you can probably appreciate the chance of seeing badgers is very high on these events and I take every precaution to maximise the chances of seeing these spectacular mammals.

Please, also be aware that due to the fact that all the shots on Woodland Birds, Woodpeckers & Nuthatches and Badger photography workshops have been set up by David Plummer, using extensive baiting, hide positioning, provision of perches etc that copyright of all images taken on these workshops remain the property of David Plummer.   In essence, a photographer can do whatever they like with their images within the private sphere; however, if these images are offered for sale, the copyright belongs to David Plummer.

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