The recent incident of a ferret-badger biting someone in Taitung has raised safety concerns among nature enthusiasts. In response, a senior official from the Forestry Bureau explained that ferret-badgers mostly inhabit deep mountain areas and rarely appear on the trails or forest roads commonly used by hikers. Even if an encounter does happen, the animal will usually flee on its own.
Former Head of the Recreation Section at Taitung Forest District Office, Huang Qunce, pointed out that rangers rarely recorded sightings of ferret-badgers during their routine inspections of forest roads and trails. Such animals have mainly been captured on infrared cameras set up in remote mountainous regions. The primary reason is that ferret-badgers tend not to live near roadsides or streams.
Huang emphasized that most hiking routes follow established forest roads or trails — areas with human activity where ferret-badgers are unlikely to appear.
(China Broadcasting Corporation)