To Be More Specific...The animals in the pictures above are Eurasian Badgers. So, here is more info on this specific breed, taken directly from http://www.badgers.org.uk/badgerpages/eurasian-badger-64.html 
ClassificationThe Eurasian badger looks rather like a small bear, and indeed when it was first described scientifically it was classified as a bear. However, the badger is not a small bear - it is in fact a big weasel! The badger's closest relatives - apart from other species of badger - are weasels, stoats, martens, polecats, otters and other members of the weasel family (the mustelidae).
NamesA male badger is called a boar and the female is called a sow. Young badgers are cubs. An old English name for the badger is Brock. As the badger is widely distributed across Europe and Asia, it has many other names in different languages. In France it is known as le blaireau. The German name for the badger is der dachs, and the Dutch name is similar - de das. Further afield, in Japan the badger is widely known as anaguma, and in Korea the badger is named ohsoree.
Appearance and General CharacteristicsI have already mentioned the badger's resemblance to a small bear. One feature that immediately distinguishes the badger is its colouration, particularly its face! The badger's black and white striped head is well known, and may be a form of warning colouration. In Japan however, the facial stripes are often very much reduced in size.
The fur on the badger's upperparts appears grey or brownish, while the fur on the throat, legs and underparts is black. The forelegs are well-developed, and the forepaws bear long, strong claws. These are adaptations for a digging way of life.
Adult badgers are around 90cm long, and can weigh anything from 6 to 17 kg (sometimes even more!). The average is around 10 - 11kg.
DistributionAs mentioned above, badgers are widely distributed across Europe and Asia. They range from Britain and Ireland in the west, to China and Japan in the east, and from Norway and Sweden in the north to the Middle East and southern parts of China.
Social OrganizationUnlike other badgers (and most other members of the weasel family come to that), the Eurasian badger often lives in groups. These groups - called clans - can be quite large (around a dozen animals) where food supplies are good. Each clan shares a "home range" containing feeding grounds and one or more setts. In areas of moderate to high population density, clans of badgers defend their home range as a territory. In those areas where food supplies are sparse, badger clans are much smaller in size (sometimes just a pair of badgers and their cubs), and home ranges are much bigger.
Activity PatternsBadgers are largely nocturnal, though they are occasionally active during the day in isolated areas. In winter, badgers do not hibernate, but in cold weather they may spend several days or even longer underground, living on their fat reserves. They become more active in the latter part of the winter when the females give birth and then come into season. The main mating season gets underway then, and with male badgers in particular wandering far and wide looking for mates, there are a lot of road casualties. During the autumn, badgers spend a great deal of time feeding, to build up their fat reserves ready for the coming winter.
SettsBadgers live in a system of interconnected tunnels and chambers called a sett. These range in size from simple affairs consisting of just one or a small number of tunnels and chambers, to massive structures with dozens of entrance holes, hundreds of metres of tunnels, and many chambers. Larger setts will have been excavated by generations of badgers, over a period of decades or even centuries in some cases.
Food and Feeding BehaviourBadgers, along with the rest of the weasel family are members of the order Carnivora - the carnivores. However, although badgers do eat some animal food, their diet is omnivorous and they will also eat a wide variety of plant foods. The principal food of the badger, in most of western Europe, is the earthworm. Large numbers are eaten on damp nights when the worms come to the surface, and they are very nutritious. Badgers also eat insects and their larvae, small mammals, carrion, fruits, nuts, cereals, roots, bulbs and tubers.
Life CycleMost badger cubs are born in and around February; the usual litter size is two or three. A cub spends the first eight weeks or so of its life underground being nursed by its mother. Its first trip outside usually takes place in late April or early May. This is a time of play, exploration, and learning. The cub has the rest of the spring, summer and autumn to feed, grow and develop before it faces its first winter. Most cubs, males and females, become sexually mature at around 12 to 15 months of age.
Badgers in the wild can live for as long as 15 years or so. One in captivity lived to be nearly 20. However, most badgers die young, and the average life span is just three years.
Predators and Defences Against ThemIn Britain, adult badgers have no natural enemies. Cubs however may occasionally be taken by foxes or eagles. In other parts of the badger's range there are larger predators, including wolves, lynx, wolverines and eagle owls. Some of these will prey on adult badgers as well as cubs.
The badger is capable of putting up a good defence, as it has powerful jaws and can inflict serious bite wounds.
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