What is a interesting fact about aardvarks?
Amazing Facts About the Aardvark They can eat 50,000 ants in a night and are brilliantly adapted to digging with their spade-shaped feet. Aardvarks are a vital part of the ecosystem as they are prey for many species, and their old burrows provide homes for other animals such as African Wild Dogs.
Why are aardvarks special?
Here is the classification of aardvarks, according to the Integrated Taxonomic Information System. The Tubulidentata order is unique because it is the only order of mammals in which there is only one living representative.
Are aardvarks blind?
As night falls, aardvarks will emerge cautiously from their dens, jumping around on the lookout for predators. They are able to see at night, but otherwise have poor vision and are color-blind. They rely on their senses of sound and smell, using their long ears and snouts to get around and find insects.
How fast can aardvarks run?
An aardvark can reportedly accelerate to 26 miles an hour. Not too shabby.
Are aardvarks shy?
Aardvark lives in the sub-Saharan Africa. This is very shy creature that can be seen rarely. Some African tribes use parts of the aardvark body in their rituals or consume this animal in their diet.
Are aardvarks aggressive?
Their main form of defence is to escape very quickly underground however, they are also known to be quite aggressive when threatened by these larger animals. Aardvarks use their strong, sharp claws to try and injure their attacker along with kicking the threatening animal with their powerful back legs.
How many teeth has an aardvark?
The mouth contains 20 teeth which are located at the back of the jaw, they are unusual in that they do not stop growing and they have no roots or enamel. Its mouth also has a 1.5ft (45cm) long tongue which is thin and sticky. The legs of the aardvark are short and powerful and end with webbed feet.
Can aardvarks swim?
The aardvark is known to be a good swimmer and has been witnessed successfully swimming in strong currents. It can dig a yard of tunnel in about five minutes, but otherwise moves fairly slowly.
Are aardvarks fast?
Aardvarks are extraordinarily fast diggers and can excavate a hole 2 feet deep in less than 30 seconds. The main predators of aardvarks include lions, leopards, and pythons.
How many teeth do aardvarks have?
What colors can aardvarks see?
Aardvarks have small eyes and their retina only contains rods (this means they are color-blind).
What language is aardvark?
Afrikaans
Borrowed from Afrikaans aardvark (obsolete), erdvark, from aarde (“earth”), (from Dutch, from Middle Dutch aerde) + vark (“pig”), (from Middle Dutch varken). Early European colonists in South Africa noticed that the animal was similar to a pig, while “aarde” hints at the animal’s habit of burrowing.
Are aardvarks edible?
There is a small number of edible animals which, for some peculiar charactertistics they present, are not affiliated in any of the mentioned categories, or are ambiguously affiliated. They are: aropi (flying squirrel), ate and ou (two species of pangolins), and igbo (aardvark).
What are some interesting facts about the Aardvark?
Here are some amazing facts about this wonderful creature: 1. Aardvarks can eat up to 60 000 ants and termites in one night, thanks to its 30cm-long sticky tongue 2. They can seal their nostrils, to keep out dust and ants 3. They have poor eyesight but a very keen sense of smell and good hearing
What do Aardvarks eat?
Aardvarks Eat Ants and Termites–and Chew With Their Stomachs. A typical aardvark can devour up to 50,000 ants and termites a night, capturing these bugs with its narrow, sticky, foot-long tongue—and it supplements its insectivorous diet with bites of the aardvark cucumber, a plant that propagates its seeds via aardvark poop.
However when pressed it can become quite aggressive and fights back with its strong limbs and claws. A female aardvark is a sow, and the baby is a cub. The aardvark is solitary by nature but the rare sight of a group of aardvarks is called an armoury.
What happens to aardvarks after they die?
After aardvarks vacate their burrows, either dying or moving on to greener pastures, these structures are often used by other African wildlife, including warthogs, wild dogs, snakes, and owls. Some aardvarks can be found in the grasslands, while others in the bushlands, savvanahs, or mountains.