Texas Man Encounters Unexpected Animal While Fishing
Tom Howe, a Texas fisherman, recently posted an encounter with a rare creature while he was fishing on Padre Island. Looking at the photo of this sand covered guy, you may not be able to tell what it is at first.
No, this isn't some weird dog or proof of the existence of Chupacabra, it's actually a badger!
According to the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department, badgers can be found all over the state, except for its farthest eastern edge. The National Park Service said families of badgers usually break up between June and August into unoccupied areas.
This poor little guy was digging in the sand for crabs, and badgers are skilled hunters and have a particular hunting technique called "digging in." Howe said that he only recently learned about badgers living on the island, but never expected to see one in person. He called the sighting "a bucket list item."
Badgers usually live in extensive burrow systems called "setts" - and these guys are normally nocturnal which is why it was so surprising to see one celebrating a day at the beach. These guys are omnivores and eat a whole lot of different things like smaller mammals, insects, fruit and plants. I guess we can add crabs to that list!
There have been a few strange animal sightings recently, including what officials suspect is a dog or coyote hanging out in Texas, and at least this coyote, or dog, or whatever, isn't all wet and covered in sand making him look like some sort of swamp creature!
We hope the temperatures cool off soon and this little guy is back to sleeping the day away, cozily in his burrow!
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