Aardwolf facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Aardwolf Temporal range: Pleistocene – Recent
An aardwolf in Namib-Nord, Namibia
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Aardwolf range

The aardwolf (Proteles cristata) is a small, insectivorous mammal, native to East Africa and Southern Africa. Its name means "earth wolf" in the Afrikaans / Dutch language. It is also called "maanhaar jackal" in Afrikaans, or civet hyena, based on the secretions (civet) from their anal glands.

The aardwolf is in the same family as the hyenas. Unlike many of its relatives in the order Carnivora, the aardwolf does not hunt large animals, or even eat meat on a regular basis; instead it eats insects, mainly termites – one aardwolf can eat about 250,000 termites during a single night by using its long, sticky tongue to capture them.

The aardwolf lives in the scrublands of eastern and southern Africa – these are open lands covered with stunted trees and shrubs. The aardwolf is nocturnal, resting in burrows during the day and coming out at night to eat.

Notes

Images for kids

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  Detail of head – taken at the Cincinnati Zoo

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  Skeleton of an aardwolf displayed at Museum of Osteology

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  Aardwolf skull

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  Aardwolf at the San Antonio Zoo

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  Illustration of Proteles cristatus

See also

In Spanish: Lobo de tierra para niños