Badgers are short, flat, fat and fluffy. They are 16 to 28 inches long and weigh 9 to 26 pounds. They have long, light gray to brown fur on their backs and sides and black on top of their heads with a white or cream colored chest, belly and throat. They have small, round, white ears and white cheeks framed by black stripes that resemble side burns. A black stripe extends from the top of the head to the nose and is separated by a white stripe from the nose to the shoulders or, in some areas, to the tail. The long, thick claws on their short, black feet are used for digging.
Wolverines have a compact and powerful build that resembles a small bear. The color of their long fur ranges from blond at birth to dark brown/black with blond tips, a gray/black tail and a light face as they age. They are much heavier than a badger, weighing 18 to 46 pounds and approximately 3 feet in length. Their heads are round head with dark eyes and round ears. They have very large black paws that act as snowshoes and very long, powerful claws. Wolverines are rarely seen in the wild and are a candidate species for protection under on the U.S. Endangered Species Act.
Wolverines and badgers rarely cross paths in the wild. In the U.S. wolverines live only in Washington's North Cascades mountains and the Rockies of Montana and Idaho. In these areas they live in high mountain valleys and on steep slopes rarely visited by humans. Although known to attack and kill deer, their primary food source is rotting animal carcasses supplemented with small animals, fruits, and insects. Badgers make their homes in prairies, meadows and scrub forests from the west coast to the Mississippi River and live on rodents, snakes, insects and animal carcasses.
The most staggering difference between these two species may be the size of territory they occupy. Male wolverines have a home range of about 920 miles; the territory for female wolverines is about 390 miles. Male and female wolverines will fight other wolverines to the death to defend their home range. The territory of male badgers is 1.5 miles, while females live in a territory of approximately 1 mile. Badgers don't defend their territory and their home ranges may overlap with other badgers.