NaIvory Man & Dados
Nonfiction Reading Test
Honey Badgers
Directions: Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow. Refer to the text
to check your answers when appropriate.
What's fiercer than a lion but smaller than a
beagle? The honey badger, one of the toughest
mammals in Africa and western Asia. Honey
badgers stand less than a foot high. They are
only a couple feet long. They weigh just over
20 pounds. Yet they have a reputation for
toughness that is far greater than their size.
Some honey badgers will chase away lions and
take their kills. I guess that goes to show you
that size isn't the only thing that matters in a
fight.
So what makes the honey badger so tough?
They have speed, stamina, and agility, but so
do many animals. They aren't stronger than
lions, so how do they stop them? The thing
that sets the honey badger apart is their skin.
Their skin is thick and tough. Arrows, spears,
and bites from other animals can rarely pierce
it. Small bullets can't even penetrate it. Not
only is their skin thick and tough, it is also
loose. This allows them to twist and turn to
attack while another animal is gripping them.
The only safe grip one can get on a honey
badger is on the back of their necks.
Honey badgers have long, sharp claws. These
claws are good for attacking and even better
for digging. Honey badgers are some of
nature's most skilled diggers. They can dig a
nine-foot tunnel into hard ground in about 10
minutes. They love to catch a meal by digging
up the burrows of frogs, rodents, and cobras.
They also use their digging skills to create
their homes. They live in small chambers in
the ground and defend them fiercely. They will
attack horses, cows, and even water buffalo if
they are foolish enough to poke around a
honey badger's den.
You don't get a reputation like the honey
badger by running from danger. The honey
badger is fearless and a tireless fighter. They
will attack any creature that threatens them,
man included. Because of the honey badger's
reputation, most predators avoid them. Some
animals use the honey badger's rep to their
advantage. Adult cheetahs have spotted coats,
but their kittens have silver manes and look
like honey badgers. Some scientists believe
that their coloring tricks predators into
avoiding them. Wouldn't you walk the other
way if you saw a honey badger?
You might be wondering: "If honey badgers
are so tough, how did they get a name that
makes them sound like a piece of candy?" The
answer makes sense. Since honey badgers
have such thick skin, bee stings rarely harm
them. So honey badgers love to raid beehives.
I can't blame them. Who doesn't like free
honey? Honey badgers chase after honey
aggressively. So much so that beekeepers in
Africa have to use electric fencing to hold
them back. There's nothing sweet about that.
Beekeepers aren't the only people who have
grown to hate honey badgers. Honey badgers
may be fun to read about, but they are nasty
neighbors. They attack chickens, livestock,
and some say children, though they usually
leave people alone. But if a honey badger
moves in your backyard, there's not a whole
lot that you can do about it. I mean, are you
going to go and tangle with an animal that eats
the bones of its prey? An animal with teeth
strong enough to crunch through turtle shells?
An animal that never tires, gives up, or backs
down? Yeah, I wouldn't either...
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