African tree Badger (Melinae Arborius Africanus)

The African tree Badger or as it is sometimes called, the short nosed Badger is one of natures rarest animals in fact it is so rare that we do not have any photographs, drawings or even any skeletal remnants. The scientific name for this beautiful animal is Melinae Arboreas Africanus which is pretty much self explanatory, Melinae is Badger, Arboreas means tree dwelling and Africanus you will probably have guessed already. It remains an enigma, despite millions of pounds being spent on research this mysterious creature has eluded even the most dedicated of scientists. Professors Laura Norder and Lydia Binn have been in hot pursuit of the Badger for over fifteen years. They spend six months of every year, during the dry season, coordinating the research from their luxury apartment overlooking lake Chad. They have at their disposal, courtesy of their sponsors, a very powerful speedboat, several light aircraft and a selection of top of the range four wheel drive vehicles, all of which are fitted with state of the art navigation and communication equipment. All of this equipment is in a constant state of readiness should there ever be a sighting of this, possibly, wonderful beast. For the rest of the year our intrepid scientists have to travel the world to attend a myriad of conferences and meetings in some of the worlds most beautiful places

Tales of this, what must be, magnificent animal first surfaced in a small village not that far from the Saharan city of Timbuktu. According to stories handed down over the years the Badger was in fact a marsupial and if this is the case it would be the first marsupial badger ever recorded outside of, well, anywhere. Sources state that before the forests disappeared the tree Badger was a common sight in the surrounding area. The natives used to watch in amusement as the badger performed its stunts high up in the canopy, unfortunately it seems that they were not designed for arboreal acrobatics and frequently fell to their death only to be scooped up and cooked by the natives. They had also developed some strikingly similar characteristics to that of the Sloth in that they would sleep hanging upside down from a branch, holding on with just the toes on their hind legs, unfortunately these were never strong enough and the badgers often fell headlong into the ground which is how the term short nosed Badger came to be used to describe these amazing yet incredibly stupid animals. Although there have been no sightings of the badger in living memory and absolutely no physical remains exist, the scientific team are adamant that with enough money and resources they will find this creature, or retire trying.

More money is needed in order to track down this elusive beas,t so please send as much as you can afford to the author who will then endeavour to travel the world in search of the Tree Badger.