American badger
The American badger is a fossorial carnivore. It preys predominantly on pocket gophers (Geomyidae), ground squirrels ("Spermophilus"), moles (Talpidae), marmots ("Marmota"), prairie dogs ("Cynomys"), pika ("Ochotona"), woodrats ("Neotoma"), kangaroo rats ("Dipodomys"), deer mice ("Peromyscus"), and voles ("Microtus"), often digging to pursue prey into their dens, and sometimes plugging tunnel entrances with objects. The American badger is a significant predator of snakes including rattlesnakes, and is considered the most important predator of rattlesnakes in South Dakota. They also prey on ground-nesting birds, such as the bank swallow or sand martin ("Riparia riparia") and the burrowing owl ("Athene cunicularia"), lizards, amphibians, carrion, fish, skunks ("Mephitis" and "Spilogale"), insects (including bees and honeycomb), and some plant foods such as corn ("Zea mais"), peas, green beans, mushrooms and other fungi, and sunflower seeds ("Helianthus").