Page 28 - February_2016_Life_In_Naples_Magazine

WHY THE

LONG FACE?

A giant faces new threats, but also has new allies

by Tim L.Tetzlaff Life in Naples | February 2016

MNaples Zoo Director of Conservation
eet the giant anteater. A creature with a hopelessly long nose. A mouth
lacking all teeth. A broad, bushy tail that looks like it’s made of old corn
brooms. Hearing that barely does the job. Eyesight that would keep us in a
perennial squint. This assemblage of body parts is a seven-foot-long giant
that eats miniature food. And they must travel long distances to do it by walking on their
knuckles. This bizarre marvel of the animal kingdom has overcome almost every obstacle
to survival – except the modern car.

While anteaters do lack some of the more common qualities of familiar animals, they
do have a few surprises up their long nose. For starters, they’ve got camouflage that rivals
an Army sniper in a ghillie suit. In the tropical forests and grasslands of Central and South
America, the giant anteater has been described as the bush that walks. And for the 16
hours a day it can rest cloaked beneath the blanket of its tail, you’d be easily forgiven for
accidentally stepping on one thinking it was leaf litter.

And speaking of something up their nose, that’s home to a two-foot-long tongue and
a keen sense of smell. These are their secret weapons for finding food. Although many tall
termite mounds can be readily spotted, anteaters prefer the lower mounds and use that
super sniffer to find them.

But termite mounds are not soft sand that fall apart upon touch. Termite mounds are
hardened shells capable of withstanding heavy rains and supporting the weight of large
animals that use them as look out points. To get inside, anteaters unveil their concealed
weapons. The reason they walk on their knuckles is revealed by a closer look at their feet
where anteaters hide powerful 10 cm (4 in) claws. Cement-hard mounds are no match for

28