Badgers: Threat or Menace?

[Theophylact]

Tunnelling badgers endanger Britain's trove of hidden relics

The secrets of how the ancient ancestors of modern Britons lived and died could be lost forever because the evidence is being destroyed by badgers.

Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire has harboured the mysteries of civilisations for more than 5,500 years, making it one of Europe's most treasured archaeological sites.

Just beneath the surface are the remains of Bronze Age burials, Iron Age enclosures, Roman villages, Saxon and Medieval settlements and the Second World War.

Yet a fast growing population of badgers, attracted to easy digging conditions, is building networks of tunnels that threaten to wreck Britain's historical treasure trove. ...

[Knothead]

Gotta watch them badgers. Although sometimes man can be pretty destructive, too...

A modest example: A few years ago, we had a jump in the gopher population. An exasperated neighbor, all on his own, came up with his very own little solution: Pour a coupla' gallons of gasoline down the hole, and light it off!!

I think this guy's idea of the livings habits of gophers came from Disney cartoons: he didn't know that these guys dig burroughs that can traverse whole blocks!!

He managed to burn down three houses with that little stunt...hope there weren't any historical artifacts down there...

[Optimus Prime]

wow that's cool!

[Redwolf]

Did the badgers dance in a meadow after buliding their tunnels?

[Epidemic]

Originally posted by Knothead
Gotta watch them badgers. Although sometimes man can be pretty destructive, too...

A modest example: A few years ago, we had a jump in the gopher population. An exasperated neighbor, all on his own, came up with his very own little solution: Pour a coupla' gallons of gasoline down the hole, and light it off!!

I think this guy's idea of the livings habits of gophers came from Disney cartoons: he didn't know that these guys dig burroughs that can traverse whole blocks!!

He managed to burn down three houses with that little stunt...hope there weren't any historical artifacts down there...

Knothead that story seems some what myth like. Is this a personal story that you can vouch for?

My experience with gasoline fires (being quite extensive ) would tend to indicate that pouring several gallons of gas down a 4 inch hole would huff and then possibly burn the surface fuel up with remaining local oxygen. Usually not burning all that hot even.

Now if he blew it with a leaf blower to get the oxygen fuel mixure right it may have burned quite some distance.

but on the surface this would appear to be a myth based upon my pyro days