Difference between revisions of "Anteater" - New World Encyclopedia
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[[Myrmecophagidae]] | [[Myrmecophagidae]] | ||
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| − | '''Anteaters''' are truly toothless [[mammals]] of South and Central America, highly specialized for feeding on [[ant]]s and [[termite]]s from their nest hills. The term is restricted to four living species of the suborder [[Vermilingua]], namely the '''Pygmy Anteater''' (''Cyclopes didactylus'') of family [[Cyclopedidae]] and '''Giant Anteater''' (''Myrmecophaga tridactyla'') and '''Lesser Anteaters''' (''Tamandua tetradactyla'' and ''T. mexicana'') of [[Myrmecophagidae]]. According to the mammalian classification of McKenna and Bell (1997), together with the [[sloth]]s, the suborder Vermilingua comprises the order [[Pilosa]] which in tern comes under the superorder [[Xenarthra]] (Edenta) together with [[armadillo]]s. | + | '''Anteaters''' are truly toothless [[mammals]] of South and Central America, highly specialized for feeding on [[ant]]s and [[termite]]s from their nest hills. The term is restricted to four living species of the suborder [[Vermilingua]], namely the '''Pygmy or Silky Anteater''' (''Cyclopes didactylus'') of family [[Cyclopedidae]] and '''Giant Anteater''' (''Myrmecophaga tridactyla'') and '''Lesser Anteaters''' (''Tamandua tetradactyla'' and ''T. mexicana'') of [[Myrmecophagidae]]. According to the mammalian classification of McKenna and Bell (1997), together with the [[sloth]]s, the suborder Vermilingua comprises the order [[Pilosa]] which in tern comes under the superorder [[Xenarthra]] (Edenta) together with [[armadillo]]s. |
The term ‘anteater’ is also colloquially applied to the mammals of diverged groups like, the [[echidna]] (spiny anteaters) of [[Monotremata]], the [[numbat]] (banded anteater) of [[Marsupialia]], [[aardvark]] (cape anteater) of [[Tubulidentia]], and the [[pangolin]] (scaly anteater) of [[Pholidota]]. However, these anteaters are not regarded as “true anteaters”. Though these so called anteaters and the true anteaters belong to unrelated groups of mammals from widely separated geographical regions (spiny anteaters and banded anteater from [[Australia]], cape anteater from [[Africa]], scaly anteater from Asia and true anteaters from [[South America]]), all of them have undergone similar morphological as well as behavioral [[adaptation]] for the common habit of feeding on ants and termites. This is the evidence of the fact that utilization of same [[niche]] anywhere takes place by similar animals with homologous or analogous organs. In another words, the body of animals are purposefully designed according to their habit and [[habitat]] or their purpose, no matter where they come from or what they are. | The term ‘anteater’ is also colloquially applied to the mammals of diverged groups like, the [[echidna]] (spiny anteaters) of [[Monotremata]], the [[numbat]] (banded anteater) of [[Marsupialia]], [[aardvark]] (cape anteater) of [[Tubulidentia]], and the [[pangolin]] (scaly anteater) of [[Pholidota]]. However, these anteaters are not regarded as “true anteaters”. Though these so called anteaters and the true anteaters belong to unrelated groups of mammals from widely separated geographical regions (spiny anteaters and banded anteater from [[Australia]], cape anteater from [[Africa]], scaly anteater from Asia and true anteaters from [[South America]]), all of them have undergone similar morphological as well as behavioral [[adaptation]] for the common habit of feeding on ants and termites. This is the evidence of the fact that utilization of same [[niche]] anywhere takes place by similar animals with homologous or analogous organs. In another words, the body of animals are purposefully designed according to their habit and [[habitat]] or their purpose, no matter where they come from or what they are. | ||
==Habit and Habitat== | ==Habit and Habitat== | ||
| − | All the four species of Anteaters are found in South and Central America. The giant Anteater is frequenting low swampy [[savanna]]s, along the banks of [[river]]s, and the depths of the humid forests, but is nowhere abundant. It lives above ground, not burrowing underground like armadillos or aardvarks | + | All the four species of Anteaters are found exclusively in South and Central America. The giant Anteater is frequenting low swampy [[savanna]]s, along the banks of [[river]]s, and the depths of the humid forests, but is nowhere abundant. It lives above ground, not burrowing underground like armadillos or aardvarks or up the trees like other Anteaters. The species is nocturnal when living near humans, but away from population it is active during the day. |
The lesser Anteaters differ essentially from Giant Anteater in their habits, being mainly arboreal and nocturnal. They inhabit the dense primeval forests. | The lesser Anteaters differ essentially from Giant Anteater in their habits, being mainly arboreal and nocturnal. They inhabit the dense primeval forests. | ||
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All the Anteaters are characterized by a long tubular and tapered snout with a small terminal mouth/nose, an extraordinarily long worm–shaped tongue (about 2 feet long in case of Giant Anteater) and a lack of teeth in the snout. The forelimbs are remarkable; their paws are with very sharp, long and backwardly hooked claws, the third one being especially well developed. The external ears are small and rounded, and the eyes are small. They have a small round brain. Anteaters have generally a poor hearing and eyesight, but a very good sense of smell. In fact, the sense of smell in Giant Anteater is regarded to be some 40 times stronger than that of humans (The Online Anteater 2001). | All the Anteaters are characterized by a long tubular and tapered snout with a small terminal mouth/nose, an extraordinarily long worm–shaped tongue (about 2 feet long in case of Giant Anteater) and a lack of teeth in the snout. The forelimbs are remarkable; their paws are with very sharp, long and backwardly hooked claws, the third one being especially well developed. The external ears are small and rounded, and the eyes are small. They have a small round brain. Anteaters have generally a poor hearing and eyesight, but a very good sense of smell. In fact, the sense of smell in Giant Anteater is regarded to be some 40 times stronger than that of humans (The Online Anteater 2001). | ||
| − | The largest extant representative of the group is the Giant Anteater, an animal measuring 4 feet (1.2 m) in length, excluding the tail, and 2 feet (60 cm) in height at the shoulder and weighing over 30 kg. It has a long, thin head and a large, bushy tail of about 2 feet (60 cm) long. The name of the species, tridactyla, comes from "tri" and "dactylos", which | + | The largest extant representative of the group is the Giant Anteater, an animal measuring 4 feet (1.2 m) in length, excluding the tail, and 2 feet (60 cm) in height at the shoulder and weighing over 30 kg. It has a long, thin head and a large, bushy tail of about 2 feet (60 cm) long. The name of the species, tridactyla, comes from "tri" and "dactylos", which are Greek words for "three fingers". However, the Giant Anteaters actually have five toes on each paw (the fifth is vestigial). The name probably came about because only three of the front toes have prominent claws and can be easily seen. Its prevailing color is gray, with a broad black band, bordered with white, starting on the chest, and passing obliquely over the shoulder, diminishing gradually in breadth as it approaches the loins, where it ends in a point. Giant Anteaters are sometimes mistaken for bears because of their claws and bushy fur. |
The two Anteaters of the genus ''Tamandua'', the Southern Tamandua (''T. tetradactyla'') and the Northern Tamandua (''T. mexicana''), are much smaller than the Giant Anteater, only about 3 feet (90 cm) long. The usual colour is yellowish–white, with a broad black lateral band, covering nearly the whole of the side of the body. They are short haired. | The two Anteaters of the genus ''Tamandua'', the Southern Tamandua (''T. tetradactyla'') and the Northern Tamandua (''T. mexicana''), are much smaller than the Giant Anteater, only about 3 feet (90 cm) long. The usual colour is yellowish–white, with a broad black lateral band, covering nearly the whole of the side of the body. They are short haired. | ||
| − | The Silky Anteater is only about | + | The Silky Anteater is only about 14 in. (35 cm) long, nearly about the size of a rat. It is of a general yellowish color. Its silky golden fur makes it resemble the seed pods of the silk cotton tree. Both the tamanduas and the Silky Anteater possess partially prehensile tails for helping them in their arboreal life. Thus, the undersides of their tails lack hair. |
==Food Habit== | ==Food Habit== | ||
| − | Anteaters feed almost exclusively on ants and termites, they also take some beetle larvae and bees, and in captivity | + | Anteaters feed almost exclusively on ants and termites, they also take some beetle larvae and bees, and in captivity the Giant Anteaters accept some fruits (Myers 2001). Their sense of smell rather than any other is used to find prey (McDonald 1997). |
| − | The anteater rips open a termite or ant hill with its clawed hand and work its tubular snout into the opening, sticking its long, worm–shaped tongue down into the heart of the colony. As the insects swarm to the damaged part of their dwelling, it draws them into its mouth by means of its flexible, rapidly moving tongue covered with sticky saliva. A full–grown | + | The anteater rips open a termite or ant hill with its clawed hand and work its tubular snout into the opening, sticking its long, worm–shaped tongue down into the heart of the colony. As the insects swarm to the damaged part of their dwelling, it draws them into its mouth by means of its flexible, rapidly moving tongue covered with sticky saliva. A full–grown Giant Anteater eats upwards of 30,000 ants and termites a day (CMN 2007). |
| − | Anteaters seldom spend more than a couple of minutes feeding at any one nest. Only a few thousand insects are removed at one feeding and then the nest is abandoned. The anteaters circulate around their territories, feeding lightly here and there, never destroying any one nest and, therefore, never eliminating any of their food | + | Anteaters seldom spend more than a couple of minutes feeding at any one nest. Only a few thousand insects are removed at one feeding and then the nest is abandoned. The anteaters circulate around their territories, feeding lightly here and there, never destroying any one nest and, therefore, never eliminating any of their food bases. Termites and ants recover losses very rapidly (Irvine 2007). |
==Behavior== | ==Behavior== | ||
| − | Adults are normally solitary. Though they are generally inoffensive animals, when attacked they can defend themselves with the emission a shrill call (as in Silky Anteater) or with their sabre–like anterior claws (as in Giant Anteater). An embrace by the Giant Anteater's powerful forelimbs can sometimes prove fatal. The Giant Anteater walks clumsily on the soles of its back feet and on the in–turned claws of its front feet. The anteater has no fixed home. Each night, a | + | Adults are normally solitary. Though they are generally inoffensive animals, when attacked they can defend themselves with the emission a shrill call (as in Silky Anteater) or with their sabre–like anterior claws (as in Giant Anteater). An embrace by the Giant Anteater's powerful forelimbs can sometimes prove fatal. The Giant Anteater walks clumsily on the soles of its back feet and on the in–turned claws of its front feet. The anteater has no fixed home. Each night, a Giant Anteater finds a secluded spot and curls up to sleep, with its long bushy tail covering its head and body. |
==Breeding== | ==Breeding== | ||
| − | The Anteaters are usually non-gregarious animals and come together primarily for the purpose of breeding. Usually male are larger than female, however, in Silky Anteater they are of same size. The female produces one offspring per birth after a gestation period of around 190 days (for Giant Anteater). During much of its first year of life, a young Anteater will ride on its mother's back (or tail in the case of the Silky Anteater), though the baby anteater is capable of a slow gallop four weeks after birth. Giant Anteaters rarely make sounds. They do it mostly when they are young; the sound is a high-pitched, shrilly grunt noise. A baby that has fallen off his mother's back will grunt to its mother either to remind her that it has fallen off or to simply instruct her where it is or to get her attention. | + | The Anteaters are usually non-gregarious animals and come together primarily for the purpose of breeding. Usually male are larger than female, however, in Silky Anteater they are of same size. The female produces one offspring per birth after a gestation period of around 190 days (for Giant Anteater). During much of its first year of life, a young Anteater will ride on its mother's back (or tail in the case of the Silky Anteater), though the baby anteater is capable of a slow gallop four weeks after birth (McDonald 1997). Giant Anteaters rarely make sounds. They do it mostly when they are young; the sound is a high-pitched, shrilly grunt noise. A baby that has fallen off his mother's back will grunt to its mother either to remind her that it has fallen off or to simply instruct her where it is or to get her attention (The Online Anteater 2007). |
==The threatened existence== | ==The threatened existence== | ||
| − | The Myrmecophagidae family is known only back to the Early Miocene (25 million years ago) in South America, because of the poor fossil records | + | The Myrmecophagidae family is known only back to the Early Miocene (25 million years ago) in South America, because of the poor fossil records; however, the group is likely to be older (Myers 2001). Though the anteaters are docile and inoffensive by nature, their principal predators are the [[puma]] and the [[jaguar]]. These large predators must be careful in their attacks, however, as an embrace by the Giant Anteater's powerful forelimbs can sometimes prove fatal. This natural prey–predator relationship is helping the animals to keep the natural equilibrium. |
However, in some areas, Giant Anteaters are becoming quite rare due to the trade in exotic pets, and the destruction of their habitats. Giant anteaters are hunted in South America for their meat and for trophies. They are also killed because they are mistakenly believed to kill dogs and cattle, and, perhaps most frequently, because they are easy to kill (CMN 2007). The lesser anteaters are hunted for the tendons in their tails, which make good ropes; they are also used by natives to rid houses of ants! | However, in some areas, Giant Anteaters are becoming quite rare due to the trade in exotic pets, and the destruction of their habitats. Giant anteaters are hunted in South America for their meat and for trophies. They are also killed because they are mistakenly believed to kill dogs and cattle, and, perhaps most frequently, because they are easy to kill (CMN 2007). The lesser anteaters are hunted for the tendons in their tails, which make good ropes; they are also used by natives to rid houses of ants! | ||
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==References== | ==References== | ||
*CMN. 2007. [http://nature.ca/notebooks/english/egiant.htm ''Giant Anteater'']. Nature.ca: Canadian Museum of Nature. Retrieved October 29, 2007. | *CMN. 2007. [http://nature.ca/notebooks/english/egiant.htm ''Giant Anteater'']. Nature.ca: Canadian Museum of Nature. Retrieved October 29, 2007. | ||
| − | *Irvine, Tom. [http://www.vibrationdata.com/anteaters.htm ''Anteater Page'']. Retrieved October 29, 2007. | + | *Irvine, Tom. 2007. [http://www.vibrationdata.com/anteaters.htm ''Anteater Page'']. Retrieved October 29, 2007. |
*McDonal, Andrew. 1997. [http://www.geocities.com/myrmecophagavir/ ''ANTEATERS'']. Retrieved October 29, 2007. | *McDonal, Andrew. 1997. [http://www.geocities.com/myrmecophagavir/ ''ANTEATERS'']. Retrieved October 29, 2007. | ||
*Myers, P. 2001. [http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Myrmecophagidae.html ''Myrmecophagidae''] (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Retrieved October 29, 2007. | *Myers, P. 2001. [http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Myrmecophagidae.html ''Myrmecophagidae''] (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Retrieved October 29, 2007. | ||
Revision as of 15:57, 10 November 2007
| Anteaters | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Northern Tamandua
(Tamandua mexicana) | ||||||||||||
| Scientific classification | ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
|
Cyclopedidae |
Anteaters are truly toothless mammals of South and Central America, highly specialized for feeding on ants and termites from their nest hills. The term is restricted to four living species of the suborder Vermilingua, namely the Pygmy or Silky Anteater (Cyclopes didactylus) of family Cyclopedidae and Giant Anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla) and Lesser Anteaters (Tamandua tetradactyla and T. mexicana) of Myrmecophagidae. According to the mammalian classification of McKenna and Bell (1997), together with the sloths, the suborder Vermilingua comprises the order Pilosa which in tern comes under the superorder Xenarthra (Edenta) together with armadillos.
The term ‘anteater’ is also colloquially applied to the mammals of diverged groups like, the echidna (spiny anteaters) of Monotremata, the numbat (banded anteater) of Marsupialia, aardvark (cape anteater) of Tubulidentia, and the pangolin (scaly anteater) of Pholidota. However, these anteaters are not regarded as “true anteaters”. Though these so called anteaters and the true anteaters belong to unrelated groups of mammals from widely separated geographical regions (spiny anteaters and banded anteater from Australia, cape anteater from Africa, scaly anteater from Asia and true anteaters from South America), all of them have undergone similar morphological as well as behavioral adaptation for the common habit of feeding on ants and termites. This is the evidence of the fact that utilization of same niche anywhere takes place by similar animals with homologous or analogous organs. In another words, the body of animals are purposefully designed according to their habit and habitat or their purpose, no matter where they come from or what they are.
Habit and Habitat
All the four species of Anteaters are found exclusively in South and Central America. The giant Anteater is frequenting low swampy savannas, along the banks of rivers, and the depths of the humid forests, but is nowhere abundant. It lives above ground, not burrowing underground like armadillos or aardvarks or up the trees like other Anteaters. The species is nocturnal when living near humans, but away from population it is active during the day.
The lesser Anteaters differ essentially from Giant Anteater in their habits, being mainly arboreal and nocturnal. They inhabit the dense primeval forests.
The silky Anteater is a native of the hottest area in the tall humid forests, and exclusively arboreal and nocturnal in its habits.
Body features
All the Anteaters are characterized by a long tubular and tapered snout with a small terminal mouth/nose, an extraordinarily long worm–shaped tongue (about 2 feet long in case of Giant Anteater) and a lack of teeth in the snout. The forelimbs are remarkable; their paws are with very sharp, long and backwardly hooked claws, the third one being especially well developed. The external ears are small and rounded, and the eyes are small. They have a small round brain. Anteaters have generally a poor hearing and eyesight, but a very good sense of smell. In fact, the sense of smell in Giant Anteater is regarded to be some 40 times stronger than that of humans (The Online Anteater 2001).
The largest extant representative of the group is the Giant Anteater, an animal measuring 4 feet (1.2 m) in length, excluding the tail, and 2 feet (60 cm) in height at the shoulder and weighing over 30 kg. It has a long, thin head and a large, bushy tail of about 2 feet (60 cm) long. The name of the species, tridactyla, comes from "tri" and "dactylos", which are Greek words for "three fingers". However, the Giant Anteaters actually have five toes on each paw (the fifth is vestigial). The name probably came about because only three of the front toes have prominent claws and can be easily seen. Its prevailing color is gray, with a broad black band, bordered with white, starting on the chest, and passing obliquely over the shoulder, diminishing gradually in breadth as it approaches the loins, where it ends in a point. Giant Anteaters are sometimes mistaken for bears because of their claws and bushy fur.
The two Anteaters of the genus Tamandua, the Southern Tamandua (T. tetradactyla) and the Northern Tamandua (T. mexicana), are much smaller than the Giant Anteater, only about 3 feet (90 cm) long. The usual colour is yellowish–white, with a broad black lateral band, covering nearly the whole of the side of the body. They are short haired.
The Silky Anteater is only about 14 in. (35 cm) long, nearly about the size of a rat. It is of a general yellowish color. Its silky golden fur makes it resemble the seed pods of the silk cotton tree. Both the tamanduas and the Silky Anteater possess partially prehensile tails for helping them in their arboreal life. Thus, the undersides of their tails lack hair.
Food Habit
Anteaters feed almost exclusively on ants and termites, they also take some beetle larvae and bees, and in captivity the Giant Anteaters accept some fruits (Myers 2001). Their sense of smell rather than any other is used to find prey (McDonald 1997). The anteater rips open a termite or ant hill with its clawed hand and work its tubular snout into the opening, sticking its long, worm–shaped tongue down into the heart of the colony. As the insects swarm to the damaged part of their dwelling, it draws them into its mouth by means of its flexible, rapidly moving tongue covered with sticky saliva. A full–grown Giant Anteater eats upwards of 30,000 ants and termites a day (CMN 2007).
Anteaters seldom spend more than a couple of minutes feeding at any one nest. Only a few thousand insects are removed at one feeding and then the nest is abandoned. The anteaters circulate around their territories, feeding lightly here and there, never destroying any one nest and, therefore, never eliminating any of their food bases. Termites and ants recover losses very rapidly (Irvine 2007).
Behavior
Adults are normally solitary. Though they are generally inoffensive animals, when attacked they can defend themselves with the emission a shrill call (as in Silky Anteater) or with their sabre–like anterior claws (as in Giant Anteater). An embrace by the Giant Anteater's powerful forelimbs can sometimes prove fatal. The Giant Anteater walks clumsily on the soles of its back feet and on the in–turned claws of its front feet. The anteater has no fixed home. Each night, a Giant Anteater finds a secluded spot and curls up to sleep, with its long bushy tail covering its head and body.
Breeding
The Anteaters are usually non-gregarious animals and come together primarily for the purpose of breeding. Usually male are larger than female, however, in Silky Anteater they are of same size. The female produces one offspring per birth after a gestation period of around 190 days (for Giant Anteater). During much of its first year of life, a young Anteater will ride on its mother's back (or tail in the case of the Silky Anteater), though the baby anteater is capable of a slow gallop four weeks after birth (McDonald 1997). Giant Anteaters rarely make sounds. They do it mostly when they are young; the sound is a high-pitched, shrilly grunt noise. A baby that has fallen off his mother's back will grunt to its mother either to remind her that it has fallen off or to simply instruct her where it is or to get her attention (The Online Anteater 2007).
The threatened existence
The Myrmecophagidae family is known only back to the Early Miocene (25 million years ago) in South America, because of the poor fossil records; however, the group is likely to be older (Myers 2001). Though the anteaters are docile and inoffensive by nature, their principal predators are the puma and the jaguar. These large predators must be careful in their attacks, however, as an embrace by the Giant Anteater's powerful forelimbs can sometimes prove fatal. This natural prey–predator relationship is helping the animals to keep the natural equilibrium.
However, in some areas, Giant Anteaters are becoming quite rare due to the trade in exotic pets, and the destruction of their habitats. Giant anteaters are hunted in South America for their meat and for trophies. They are also killed because they are mistakenly believed to kill dogs and cattle, and, perhaps most frequently, because they are easy to kill (CMN 2007). The lesser anteaters are hunted for the tendons in their tails, which make good ropes; they are also used by natives to rid houses of ants!
ReferencesISBN links support NWE through referral fees
- CMN. 2007. Giant Anteater. Nature.ca: Canadian Museum of Nature. Retrieved October 29, 2007.
- Irvine, Tom. 2007. Anteater Page. Retrieved October 29, 2007.
- McDonal, Andrew. 1997. ANTEATERS. Retrieved October 29, 2007.
- Myers, P. 2001. Myrmecophagidae (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Retrieved October 29, 2007.
- The Online Anteater. 2007. Giant anteater information, picture, links and more. Retrieved October 29, 2007.
Gallery
A Giant Anteater meanders around his yard at the Sacramento Zoo
Anteater Tamandua mexicana in Corcovado, NP Costa Rica
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