Aardvark

General Info :

The aardvark is a medium-sized mammal native of Africa. The closest living relatives of the aardvark are the elephant shrews, along with the sirenians, hyraxes, tenrecs, and elephants. With their extinct relatives, these animals form the superorder Afrotheria.

Fossils from the aardvark have been dated to 5 million years, and have been located throughout Europe and Asia.

Physique :

The aardvark looks like pig in appearance. Its body is covered with coarse hairs. The limbs are of moderate length. The front feet have four toes, while the rear feet have all five toes. The ears, which are long, and the tail is very thick at the base and gradually tapers. The greatly elongated head is set on a short, thick neck, and the end of the snout bears a disc, which houses the nostrils. The snout resembles an elongated pig snout. The mouth is small and tubular, typical of species that feed on ants and termites. The aardvark has a long, thin, snakelike, protruding tongue (as much as 30 centimetres (12 in) long and elaborate structures supporting a keen sense of smell. It has short powerful legs and compact claws.

An aardvark's weight is typically between 40 and 65 kilograms (88 and 140 lb). An aardvark's length is usually between 1 and 1.3 metres (3.3 and 4.3 ft), and can reach lengths of 2.2 metres (7 ft 3 in) when its tail (which can be up to 70 centimetres (28 in)) is taken into account. The aardvark is pale yellowish-gray in color and often stained reddish-brown by soil. The aardvark's coat is thin, and the animal's primary protection is its tough skin.

The aardvark is born with conventional incisors and canines at the front of the jaw, which fall out and are not replaced. Adult aardvarks have only cheek teeth at the back of the jaw, and have a dental formula of: 0.0.2-3.30.0.2.3 These remaining teeth are peg-like and rootless and are of unique composition. The teeth consist of 14 upper and 12 lower jaw molars.

Diet :

Aardvarks mainly eat ants and termites.

Distribution :

Aardvarks live in sub-Saharan Africa. They have been documented as high as 3,200 metres (10,500 ft) in Ethiopia. They are known to live throughout sub-Saharan Africa all the way to South Africa with few exceptions. These exceptions are coastal areas of Namibia, Ivory Coast, and Ghana.