Habits: Not much is known about the aardvark. Active by night, aardvark journeys of close to 20 miles in one night have been tracked by radio. Solitary by nature, except for females rearing young, the aardvark lives in a 10 to 13 foot burrow with a large sleeping chamber at the end. It makes separate shallow holes for droppings, which it covers with earth. It burrows quickly and easily with its well adapted front legs and claws. The aardvark uses several burrows for temporary shelters when foraging during bad weather or escaping predators. It uses larger, more permanent sites for breeding.

These large burrows are built with many entrances and may have several chambers that are constantly enlarged and altered. They can extend to more than 40 feet in length. The aardvark can excavate a sizable hole in 10 to 15 minutes, depending on the type of soil. Active at night, the aardvark rests in its complex of deep burrows during the day.

Breeding: Because of its nocturnal habits, little is known about aardvark breeding in the wild. The young are born either before or during the rainy season when food is plentiful. The gestation period lasts seven months and the single young weighs four to five pounds. After two weeks, the baby takes short feeding trips with the mother and remains with her for six months. At that point the young aardvark can dig its own burrow. The young tend to stay with their mother until the start of the next breeding season.

Food and Feeding: The aardvark feeds only at night, using its good senses of smell and hearing to find ant and termite nests. It moves in a zigzag course with its nose held close to the ground and its ears pointing forward. When it locates a nest, it digs a small hole with its sharp claws into the nest wall, inserting its long, sticky tongue inside to scoop up swarming insects. The aardvark slowly enlarges the hole, alternately feeding and digging in short bursts, until its whole body can enter the nest. It does not destroy the nest; rather, it returns to the same nest to feed during the next several nights. Ants are more plentiful during the wet season and termites thrive in the dry season. When these foods are scarce, the aardvark eats soft bodied insects and fruit.

Predators: Humans, hunting dogs, pythons, and big cats such as lions and leopards hunt the aardvark. Warthogs prey on young aardvarks. The aardvark flees and rapidly digs itself into the ground to escape predators. When cornered, it will fight, lashing out with its tail and four feet.

Key Facts:
Sizes:
Length: Head and body, 3-4 ft. Tail, 1 ½-2 ft.
Weight: 90-145 lb.

Breeding:
Sexual maturity: Not known
Mating: Late fall and winter
Gestation: 7 months
No. of young: Usually 1, occasionally 2, born at the beginning of the rainy season when food is plentiful.

Lifestyle:
Habit: Nocturnal and solitary, traveling 10-20 miles each night in search of food
Diet: Ants and termites; also eats soft bodied insects and fruit when main foods are scarce
Life span: 10 years in captivity

Related species: The aardvark has no known relatives

Distribution: Open woodland, grassland, and scrub areas of Africa south of the Sahara.

Conservation: Limited by its diet, the aardvark is vulnerable to changes in land usage, especially intensive crop farming. Its main food – the termite – is increasing so the aardvark is not threatened.

Features of the Aardvark:
Claws: Long and spoon shaped, they have sharp edges ideal for burrowing into the ground or termite nests at great speeds, helped by its short but extremely powerful limbs. The aardvark has four claws on each front foot and five on the back.
Snout: Elongated, flexible snout is protected from dust and dirt by a fringe of rough bristles. Nostrils close up when the aardvark burrows, providing protection from attacks by ants and termites.
Tail: powerful, thick, and hairless. Used for defense or for support when standing upright.
Tongue: Long (1 ½ ft.), thin, and sticky. Lets the aardvark feed on ants or termites through a hole in their nest.

Did You Know:
The aardvarks powerful claws can break through termite nest walls too hard for a human to penetrate with a pick ax.
The aardvarks name comes from the Afrikaans word for “earth pig.”
If disturbed, the aardvark sits up on its hindquarters to listen for danger, supported by its tail, like a kangaroo.
Natives of some tribes in Zaire wear aardvark tooth necklaces for good luck.
Aardvark is the first animal name listed in the English dictionary.