anteater

(vertebrate zoology) Any of several mammals, in five orders, which live on a diet of ants and termites.

A name associated with several animals in five different orders of the three major groups of living mammals (see table). They are so named because they are insectivorous, having a diet of ants and termites. The animal most frequently associated with this name is the ground-living Myrmecophaga tridactyla, the giant anteater, a member of the family Myrmecophagidae in the order Edentata (see illustration). This family has three other species, Tamandua longicaudata, T. tetradactyla, and Cyclopes didactylus, all of which are arboreal.

The giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla).

All four species are restricted to the tropical regions of South and Central America. Myrmecophaga tridactyla prefers the grasslands and more open forested areas. The animal is about 6 ft (1.8 m) long including the tail length, which measures about 2 ft (0.6 m). It is toothless, and the head extends into a long, tubular snout with a small mouth opening. The tongue is long, protrusible, and covered with a viscous mucous material which entraps the insects. The front feet have greatly enlarged claws used for tearing into ant and termite mounds and as defensive weapons. The body is covered with long hair, and in Cyclopes the tail is prehensile. Usually a single young is produced by the female, which she may carry on her back until it is quite large. See also Aardvark; Edentata; Marsupialia; Monotremata; Pholidota; Tubulidentata.