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Aardvark

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Mammals

                    iAardvark

                             Conservation status

   Least Concern (LC)
            Scientific classification

   Kingdom: Animalia
   Phylum:  Chordata
   Class:   Mammalia
   Order:   Tubulidentata
            Huxley, 1872
   Family:  Orycteropodidae
            Gray, 1821
   Genus:   Orycteropus
            G. Cuvier, 1798
   Species: O. afer

                                Binomial name

   Orycteropus afer
   ( Pallas, 1766)

   The Aardvark (Orycteropus afer) is a medium-sized mammal native to
   Africa. The name comes from the Afrikaans/Dutch for "earth pig" (aarde
   earth, varken pig), because early settlers from Europe thought it
   resembled a pig. However, the Aardvark is not closely related to pigs.

Classification

   The Aardvark is the only surviving member of the family Orycteropodidae
   and of the order Tubulidentata. The Aardvark was originally placed in
   the same order as the South American anteaters because of superficial
   similarities which, it is now known, are the result of convergent
   evolution, not common ancestry. For the same reason, Aardvarks bear a
   striking first-glance resemblance to the marsupial bandicoots, bilbies,
   and numbats of Australasia, which are not placental mammals at all. The
   Aardvark is now in its own genus, Orycteropus.

   The oldest known Tubulidentata fossils have been found in Kenya and
   date to the early Miocene. Although the relationships of Tubulidentata
   are unknown, they are probably ungulates. They spread to Europe and
   southern Asia during the later Miocene and early Pliocene periods. Two
   other genera of the family Orycteropodidae are known besides the extant
   one: Leptorycteropus and Myorycteropus. A genus from Madagascar called
   Plesiorycteropus may be related to the Aardvark.

   In the past, several individual species of Aardvark were named;
   however, current knowledge indicates that there is only one species,
   Orycteropus afer, with several subspecies; 18 have been identified but
   most are regarded as invalid.

Description

   The most distinctive charactristic of the Tubulidentata is (as the name
   implies) their teeth, which, instead of having a pulp cavity, have a
   number of thin tubes of dentine, each containing pulp and held together
   by cementum. The teeth have no enamel coating and are worn away and
   regrow continuously. The Aardvark is born with conventional incisors
   and canines at the front of the jaw, but these fall out and are not
   replaced. Adult Aardvarks have only molars at the back of the jaw.
   Aardvark
   Enlarge
   Aardvark

   The Aardvark is only vaguely pig-like; the body is stout with an arched
   back; the limbs are of moderate length. The front feet have lost the
   pollex (or 'thumb')—resulting in four toes—but the rear feet have all
   five toes. Each toe bears a large, robust nail which is somewhat
   flattened and shovel-like, and appears to be intermediate between a
   claw and a hoof. The ears are disproportionately 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 house the nostrils. The mouth is small and tubular, typical of
   species that feed on termites. The Aardvark has a long, thin,
   protrusible tongue and elaborate structures supporting a keen sense of
   smell.

   Weight is typically between 40 and 65 kg; length is usually between 1
   and 1.3 m. The Aardvark is a pale yellowish gray in colour, often
   stained reddish-brown by soil. The coat is thin and the animal's
   primary protection is its tough skin; the Aardvark has been known to
   sleep in a recently excavated ant nest, so well does it protect them.

Behaviour

   The Aardvark is nocturnal and is a solitary creature that feeds almost
   exclusively on ants and termites (formicivore); the only fruit eaten by
   aardvarks is the aardvark cucumber. An Aardvark emerges from its burrow
   in the late afternoon or shortly after sunset, and forages over a
   considerable home range, swinging its long nose from side to side to
   pick up the scent of food. When a concentration of ants or termites is
   detected, the Aardvark digs into it with its powerful front legs,
   keeping its long ears upright to listen for predators, and takes up an
   astonishing number of insects with its long, sticky tongue—as many as
   50,000 in one night have been recorded. It is an exceptionally fast
   digger, but otherwise moves fairly slowly.

   Aside from digging out ants and termites, the Aardvark also excavates
   burrows in which to live: temporary sites are scattered around the home
   range as refuges, and a main burrow is used for breeding. Main burrows
   can be deep and extensive, have several entrances and can be as long as
   13 meters. The Aardvark changes the layout of its home burrow
   regularly, and from time to time moves on and makes a new one. Only
   mothers and young share burrows.

   After a gestation period of 7 months, a single cub weighing around 2 kg
   is born, and is able to leave the burrow to accompany its mother after
   only two weeks. At six months of age it is able to dig its own burrows,
   but it will often remain with the mother until the next mating season.

   Aardvarks can live to be more than 20 years in captivity.

   The aardvark's main predators are lions, leopards, hunting dogs and
   pythons. Aardvarks can dig fast or run in zigzag fashion to elude
   enemies, but if all else fails, they will strike with their claws, tail
   and shoulders, sometimes flipping onto their backs to lash with all
   fours. Its thick skin also protects it to some extent.

Habitat

   The Aardvark is distributed across most of sub-Saharan Africa, and
   although hunted by humans both for its flesh and for its teeth (which
   are used as decorations), does not appear to be threatened. The
   Aardvark has become a staple in the diets of some tribes native to
   eastern Africa.
   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aardvark"
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   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
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