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Pangolin facts for kids

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Pangolins
Pangolin borneo.jpg
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Class:
Mammalia
Infraclass:
Eutheria
Superorder:
Laurasiatheria
Order:
Pholidota
Family:
Manidae

Gray, 1821

Pangolins (or scaly anteaters) are mammals which live in Africa and Asia. They have scales on their skin. They are the only mammals which have this adaptation.

There are three genera of pangolin, all of which eat ants and termites. They catch their food using their tongues, and they do not eat anything else.

Pangolins have features of armadillos (long, ant eating tongue and broad tail) and sloths (claws), but the pangolin is in a completely different order. The pangolin belongs to the order Pholidota.

Pangolins have is marked by large, hardened, overlapping plate-like scales. The pangolin scales are made of keratin. and are attached to muscles under the skin. and can be moved to point towards predators. Hair grows between the scales and near the rear of the animal.

The pangolin's scaled body is a bit like a pine cone or globe artichoke. It can curl up into a ball when threatened, with its overlapping scales acting like armour while it tucks its face under its tail. The scales are sharp, providing extra defence from predators.

A pangolin's main predators are wild cats, hyenas and humans. A mother pangolins gestation period is between 120 to 180 days. Young pangolin are born with scales, and they harden by the second day the pangling is out of the womb.

Images for kids

  • Pangolin skeletons

    Pangolin skeletons at the Museum of Osteology (2009)

  • Pangolin scale histology

    Schematic drawing of pangolin scale histology

  • Manis temminckii (29390603130)

    Ground pangolin in defensive posture

  • Pangolin defending itself from lions (Gir Forest, Gujarat, India)

    Indian pangolin defending itself against Asiatic lions

  • Philippine Pangolin Curled-up by Gregg Yan

    A Philippine pangolin pup and its mother, a critically endangered species endemic to the Palawan island group. It is threatened by illegal poaching for the pangolin trade to China and Vietnam, where it is regarded as a luxury medicinal delicacy.

  • Pangolin scale burn in Cameroon. Credit- Kenneth Cameron - USFWS (2) (32575640450)

    Confiscated black market pangolin scales, which are in high demand in traditional Chinese medicine, set to be destroyed by authorities in Cameroon in 2017

  • Prince of Wales Pangolin Armour

    A coat of armor made of gilded pangolin scales from India, presented in 1875–76 to the then Prince of Wales, the later Edward VII.

  • Myanmar Illicit Endangered Wildlife Market 04 (cropped)

    Pangolins (in rectangular cages) in an illegal wildlife market in Myanmar

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Pholidota para niños

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