In a fight between these two bald creatures, which would win?
Some people think honey badgers care about nothing, but that isn’t entirely accurate.
Like skunks, otters, ferrets, and other badgers, the honey badger is a member of the weasel family.
Its scientific name is ratel, but it is known as the honey badger since honey appears to be its favorite meal.
However, the animal’s actual appetite is for the bee larvae present in the honey!
The Tasmanian devil isn’t only a cartoon figure from Looney Tunes!
They are mall marsupials with rat-like features, sharp teeth, and coarse black or brown fur,
Don’t be misled by its diminutive appearance: this creature has a formidable combat style.
Size and Body Description
Honey badgers are huge mustelids, measuring 23 to 27 inches in length and weighing 17 to 27 pounds.
According to measurements collected on individuals from different populations, honey badgers in Africa are slightly larger than those in Asian populations.
The males of this species are larger than the females, indicating sexual dimorphism.
A stocky body, about 10 inches tall at the shoulder, a huge cranium, small eyes, and a muscular neck and shoulders distinguish this species.
Though color varies significantly between subspecies, the lower half of the body is often dark black, with a gray or dazzling white upper mantle.
The forefeet are powerful and broad, with huge claws that help them hold prey and run.
On the other hand, the hind feet are tiny and have short claws.
Honey badgers have thick, loose skin that makes it difficult for predators to obtain a good grip on them and allow them to twist inside their bodies and bite the assailant.
These very tenacious beasts have a coarse brown or black coat and a stocky profile resembling a juvenile bear.
The majority of them have a white stripe or patch on their chests and light markings on their sides or backs.
Their front legs are long, and their back legs are short, giving them a sluggish movement.
The Tasmanian devil is the world’s largest carnivorous mammal, growing up to 30 inches long and weighing 26 pounds, though its size varies greatly depending on its specific area and food supply.
It has a large head with sharp fangs and solid and muscular jaws that can deliver one of the most powerful bites of any mammal, pound for pound.
Range and Environment
Honey badgers can be found throughout Africa, southwestern Asia, and India.
They are found in most of Sub-Saharan Africa, stretching from the Western Cape (South Africa) northwards to southern Morocco and southwestern Algeria.
Badgers can be found in Asia on the Arabian Peninsula, Iran, and western Asia, from Turkmenistan to the Indian Peninsula.
From tropical and sub-tropical green and riparian forest to desert; from grassland to rocky hills; from open woodland to thorn forest and arid steppe, these terrestrial animals can be found in various habitats.
The Tasmanian Devil is currently only present in Tasmania, but fossil evidence suggests it originally roamed most of Australia’s mainland.
In Australia, competition with the introduced dingo has been cited as a possible explanation for its absence in many formerly populated areas.
Except in locations where there has been severe habitat fragmentation and destruction, Tasmanian devils are abundant across the state.
They’re most common around the coast and in rangeland areas, where agricultural practices ensure a steady supply of carrion.
They can also be found in mixed sclerophyll rainforests and open, dry sclerophyll forests.
Dens are usually found in hollow logs, caverns, or caves.
Nutrition
The honey badger eats anything from small mammals to giant mammals’ young, birds, reptiles, insects, carrion, and even some flora, such as luscious fruits.
Tasmanian devils are curious and active, and they travel large distances each night in search of food, sometimes traversing up to 16 kilometers.
To locate prey or carrion, they rely on their acute senses of smell and hearing.
Tasmanian devils are carnivorous marsupials that devour small prey such as snakes, birds, fish, and insects. They are also carrion eaters and scavenge everything that comes their way.
They do, however, hunt live prey such as small mammals and birds.
Devils can consume most of a corpse, including the bones, because of their tearing, shearing fangs, and powerful jaws.
Behavior
Honey badgers are nomadic in nature and almost always solitary.
They occupy a broad territory and move about to forage daily.
Female honey badgers travel lower distances per day, around 10 kilometers, whereas males can go up to 27 kilometers per day.
After foraging, male honey badgers have been found to gather with other adult-sized honey badgers and exchange grunts while sniffing and rolling around in the sand.
Honey badgers have been observed defecating in holes and marking them with their urine or anal smell glands to alert other animals to the presence of their burrow.
Honey badgers are known for being aggressive.
If their mates are threatened, males, in particular, will defend them with tremendous violence.
When another Honey Badger tries to enter their burrows, they engage in a dominance dance to see who will stay.
The Tasmanian devil is a nocturnal animal, which means it hunts and interacts after sunset.
Despite their hostile demeanor, they usually stay in a “home” range but are not territorial.
Tasmanian devils like swimming when they are not carrying offspring in their pouches.
Like raccoons, they will wade around in the water and feel around with their paws.
When threatened, Tasmanian devils yawn, revealing their huge teeth.
This is a scare tactic, although they are mostly bluffs, they can sometimes escalate to real fights if the attackers don’t retreat.
Before combat with other devils, they will sneeze violently.
When Tasmanian devils are stressed, they emit a powerful, unpleasant odor.
Let’s see who will emerge victorious in this battle!
The Honey Badger or Tasmanian Devil?
Both creatures are strong and powerful for their size.
The devil has a more powerful bite, but the badger is bigger and has better claws.
Both of them can fend off attacks from considerably larger predators regularly.
With its fearless attitude, the honey badger is probably the best example of a brave wild animal.
It wouldn’t hesitate to defend itself from lions and other larger predators.
Because of its thick skin and strong defensive abilities, it has few predators.
Surprisingly, its skin is supple, allowing the honey badger to twist and turn within it freely.
Its neck skin is a quarter-inch thick, its eyes are minuscule, and its ears are little more than ridges on the skin, all adaptations for avoiding damage while fighting.
The honey badger has short legs with powerful claws on the unusually long forelimbs.
The Tasmanian devil is smaller, about the size of a small dog.
Despite its small stature, it has a stocky, muscular physique and a huge head and neck with a broad gape.
Pound for Pound the Tasmanian devil has the most substantial bite force of any living mammal, thanks to its massive head and neck, and it hunts prey and scavenges carrion.
A single bite from a Tasmanian devil may easily break your arm.
Honeybadger, in my opinion, would win since it is larger, lives in a far more dangerous environment than the Tasmanian devil, and has thicker skin than the Tasmanian devil!