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 encompassing 10 to 30 kilometres,[1]
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. Its claws enable it to dig through the extremely hard crust
of a termite mound quickly, avoiding the dust by sealing the nostrils.
When successful, the aardvark's long (as long as 30 centimetres)[1]
tongue licks up the insects; the termites' stinging attacks are rendered
futile by the tough skin. Its keen hearing warns it of predators: lions,
leopards, hyenas, and pythons.

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; the old burrows are then inhabited by smaller animals like
the African Wild Dog.  Only mothers and young share burrows. If
attacked in the tunnel, it will seal the tunnel off behind itself or turn
around and attack with its claws.

Aardvarks only pair during the breeding season; 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, and is eating termites at 14 weeks and is weaned by 16
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, and is
sexually capable by the season after that.

Aardvarks can live to be over 24 years old 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.
Their thick skin also protects them to some extent.


Habitat

Aardvarks live in Sub-saharan Africa, where there is suitable habitat
for them to live, such as savannas, grasslands, woodlands and
bushland, and available food (i.e., ants and termites). They lair in
burrows they dig themselves.

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Aardvark
Conservation Status: Least Concern
Some Information & Graphics obtained from Wikipedia
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