Aardvark: Tubulidentata - Physical Characteristics, Habitat, Diet, Behavior And Reproduction - GEOGRAPHIC RANGE, AARDVARKS AND PEOPLE, CONSERVATION STATUS
wildlife african july accessed
Though not common anywhere, aardvarks live primarily in the grassland and woodlands of the part of Africa south of the Sahara desert. They have also been seen in rainforests.
Termites are the aardvark's preferred food. Aardvarks will dig at a termite mound and eat the escaping termites, or look for a whole colony on the move and eat them as they march along. (© Nigel J. Dennis/Photo Researchers, Inc. Reproduced by permission.)
European colonialists hunted aardvarks for their meat and hide. Africans continue to hunt aardvarks and consider it a sport as well as a means of survival.
Aardvarks are classified as Vulnerable, facing a high risk of extinction in the wild, by the World Conservation Union (IUCN).
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Books:
Joyce, Peter. From Aardvark to Zebra: Secrets of African Wildlife. Cape Town, South Africa: Struik, 2000.
McColaugh, Doreen Wolfson. Wild Lives Guidebook. African Wildlife Federation, 1997. Online at http://www.awf.org/wildlives/60 (accessed on July 9, 2004).
Additional Topics
Aardvarks have elongated, or stretched-out, heads with a pig-like snout and tubular ears. Their muscular, arched bodies are protected by a thick, grayish brown skin that is covered with bristles. The front feet have four toes as well as sharp claws, while the back feet have five toes. The cone-shaped tail is short and tapered, smaller at the end. The long tongue is sticky to help catch insects. Ad…
Aardvarks began eating termites thirty-five million years ago, and that's still their preferred meal. A hill of termites is not enough to satisfy an aardvark, however, so it searches for entire termite colonies. These colonies march in columns 33 to 130 feet (10 to 40 meters) long, which makes it easy for the aardvark to suck the termites through its nostrils. When attacking a termite mound…
Aardvarks are solitary creatures, they prefer to live alone and have never been found in large numbers. Because they are nocturnal, nighttime, animals, they are not seen very often. In the warmer seasons, they come out of their burrows just after the sun sets. They are able to hunt and forage, gather food, even if it is a moonless night because they rely on their sense of smell to locate termites.…
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