Tamandua Anteater Fun Facts

The three members of the anteater family are like the three bears in the story of Goldilocks. There is a big one, the giant anteater (more), some six feet in length, the silky anteater (more), about a foot long, and then there is the one that is in between, the Tamandua, which is about four feet long. There are two species of the Tamandua, the northern Tamandua (Tamandua mexicana) and the southern Tamandua (Tamandua tetradactyla). The northern Tamandua lives in forest habitats from southern Mexico to northern South America, while the southern Tamandua lives in a variety of habitats as far south as northern Argentina. Some hunters kill them, claiming that they kill hunting dogs, although there is no evidence of this, and they are also hunted for the tendons in their tails, which are used to make rope.

What is the appearance of a Tamandua anteater?

Both Tamanduas are about twenty to thirty inches in length, including the head with its elongated snout with a tiny opening for the tongue and the body. The tail is up to two feet in length, hairy at the base but tapering to a naked, prehensile tip. Their coarse fur is golden with a black vest shape on the back. Tamanduas have four claws on their front feet and five on their rear feet.

What is the life of a Tamandua anteater like?

The giant anteater is terrestrial, living exclusively on the ground, and the little silky anteater lives almost exclusively in the trees (arboreal). The in-between Tamandua lives in both environments. Generally, the Tamandua sleeps during the day, taking advantage of any kind of shelter or den (such as a hollow log) that it can find.

What does the Tamandua anteater eat?

As its name suggests, like the other anteaters, the Tamandua eats ants and other insects, including bees and honey. The Tamandua is also known to eat some fruit. It uses its strong claws not only to rip open the nests of ants and termites but also to defend itself. Some Amazonian natives use Tamanduas to keep their homes and camps free of ants and termites. It is thought that they may actually protect their host trees by eating termites.

How does the Tamandua anteater reproduce?

After a pregnancy of aboutfive months, the female Tamandua gives birth to a single baby, which typically stays with her until she becomes pregnant again. The baby anteater spends much of its time riding on its mother's back, but when she is foraging for food, she may leave the baby in a den.

Do you want to learn more?

I consulted Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia, volume 13, for this article. You can, of course, find information about Tamandua anteaters at Wikipedia (here). You can find an index page to my articles on animals here.

If you are a fan of anteaters and would like some more fun facts, read my articles about the silky anteater (here) and the giant anteater (here). You may also want to get in touch with other anteater fans, and yes, there is a page for that!