NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Japanese Badger
Meles anakuma Temminck, 1844
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Japanese badger at Inokashira Park Zoo (Main park), Tokyo, on Sat 20 Jun 2009.
Nzrst1jx · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Image sourceProvider-generated thumbnail requested at 800 pixels; no local editing Local WebP display rendition; resized without cropping.
Open encyclopedia reference
The Japanese badger (Meles anakuma) is a species of carnivoran of the family Mustelidae, the weasels and their kin. Endemic to Japan, it is found on Honshu, Kyushu, Shikoku, and Shōdoshima. It is assigned to the genus Meles with its close relatives, the European (M. meles), Caucasian (M. canescens) and Asian (M. leucurus) badgers. In Japan, it is called by the name anaguma (穴熊, 貛) meaning "hole-bear", or mujina (むじな, 狢, 貉).
Wikipedia contributors, Japanese badger; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T04:28:36.460336+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Meles anakuma Temminck, 1844
- Name authority
- Temminck, 1844
- Common name
- Japanese Badger
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Carnivora
- Family
- Mustelidae
- Genus
- Meles
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classMammalia Linnaeus, 1758
- subclassTheria Parker & Haswell, 1897
- infraclassEutheria Gill, 1872
- orderCarnivora Bowdich, 1821
- suborderCaniformia Kretzoi, 1938
- familyMustelidae G. Fischer von Waldheim, 1817
- subfamilyMelinae Bonaparte, 1838
- genusMeles Brisson, 1762
- speciesMeles anakuma Temminck, 1844
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Meles. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Caucasian BadgerMeles canescens Blanford, 1875 | MustelidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| European BadgerMeles meles (Linnaeus, 1758) | MustelidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Asian BadgerMeles leucurus (Hodgson, 1847) | MustelidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=726278 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:3ZDRJ. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.