THE GIANT ANAT BEAR

CHARACTERISTICS

One of the most characteristic features of the anteater is its head and snout. Its
head is small and together with its long snout they form an elongated and very
striking unit. The narrowness of its head gives the impression that this animal
has its eyes on the sides, something unusual in land mammals. The anteater's
mouth is small and toothless. Inside it there is a long and sticky tongue that it
uses to obtain its food, made up of ants and termites.

The anteater's body is quite robust. It can measure 1.30 meters and is covered
with dense, long and hard fur. The color of their hair varies in different shades of
gray. The tail is another peculiarity since in addition to being very long,
measuring more than 85 cm, it is covered with long and abundant hairs that
give it the appearance of a feather duster.

The anteater's legs are equipped with powerful claws that fulfill a double
function, on the one hand, they are its weapons of defense against other
predators and on the other, they serve to break up termite nests and thus obtain
its preferred food. Unlike other animals, the anteater has its thumbs facing
backwards and with a powerful spike that turns them into lethal weapons.

FEEDING
These animals are classified as myrmecophages, which include all those
animals whose basic diet consists of ants and termites. The anteater uses its
powerful claws to open anthills or break up termite nests. Then with its long and
sticky tongue, which it inserts into the anthill, it catches the ants and eats them
at high speed. An anteater can eat 35 thousand ants per day.

The thick and hard fur that covers it serves to protect itself from the bites of ants
and termites when it attacks these insects.

REPRODUCTION

Anteaters are solitary animals and only come together once a year, during the
mating season. Once copulation has occurred, the female will have a gestation
period of 190 days. These animals only have one calf per birth. The young are
born in the warm spring and summer months.

The calf will only open its eyes a week after being born. As a means of
protection, the female places her calf on her back, exactly on the black strip of
hair that runs through it, and thus achieves that the calf is perfectly
camouflaged.

BEHAVIOR

The behavior of these animals can vary, depending on the family in question.
While the giant anteater has diurnal habits, the dwarf anteater is nocturnal and
has arboreal behavior, as it spends much of its time climbing trees, with the
help of its claws and tail. This allows it to protect itself from other predators such
as pumas and jaguars.
Although anteaters are not aggressive, they can be very violent. A cornered
specimen will stand on its hind legs, using its tail for balance, and lash out at its
attacker with its dangerous claws. The anteater's claws measure about ten
centimeters, and they are used to even confront pumas and jaguars.
Despite having their greatest danger in jaguars and pumas, anteaters are
greatly feared by these animals, since their powerful claws can mortally wound
felines. In combat between these animals, the anteater hugs its opponent and
stabs its thumb, which is located the opposite way than in the rest of the
animals and equipped with a strong spike. When the puma or the jaguar tries to
free the anteater from its embrace, it only deepens the wound caused by the
thumb.

HABITAT
The anteater lives in different habitats, including savannas, grasslands, swampy
areas, dry forests and rainforests. It looks for food in open areas, but rests in
areas populated with trees.

IN DANGER OF EXTINCTION
The anteater is a threatened animal. The causes of the decline in the population
of these species are varied. For many years, anteaters were highly persecuted
by hunters, since their meat was consumed by numerous tribes, the leather was
used to make different saddlery products and the thick hairs were used to make
combs. Although hunting of these animals has decreased, the advance of urban
populations and habitat changes have contributed to the population decline of
anteaters. This added to the low birth rate that the species have.
That is why efforts are being joined to preserve the anteater.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Humberto M. Mandujado, Atlas of Sciences: Illustrated Teaching Guide
Structure and Functions,
https://www.animales.website/oso-hormiguero/#prettyPhoto

https://www.zoobarcelona.cat/es/animales/oso-hormiguero

“YEAR OF DIALOGUE AND

NATIONAL RECONCILIATION”
THE GIANT ANAT BEAR

STUDENT
KIARA PFUYO BARRIENTOS
TEACHER
GLORIA AGUILAR LEVANO
GRADE AND SECTION
3 RO “C”

2019