The anteater is a mammal of the family Myrmecophagidae, order Edentata, native to Mexico, Central America, and tropical South America. An anteater lives almost entirely on ants and termites. It has toothless jaws, an extensile tongue, and claws for breaking into the nests of its prey. Species include the giant anteater Myrmecophaga tridactyla, about 1.8 metres long including the tail, the tamandua or collared anteater Tamandua tetradactyla, about 90cm long, and the silky anteater Cyclopes didactyla, about 35cm long. The name is also incorrectly applied to the aardvark, the echidna, and the pangolin. Research Anteater
Aplacental is a term applied to those mammals in which the young are destitute of a placenta. The aplacental mammals comprise the Monotremata and Marsupialia, the two lowest orders of mammals, including the duck-mole (ornithorhynchus), the porcupine, anteater, kangaroo, etc. Research Aplacental
The echidna, spiny anteater or porcupineanteater is two genera of egg-laying, burrowing, nocturnal mammals of the family Tachyglossidae. They have no teeth, but a long extensile tongue. The echidna in size and general appearance resemble a large hedgehog, excepting that the spines are longer, and the muzzle is protracted and slender, with a small aperture at the extremity for the protraction of the long flexible tongue.
The Echidna feed on insects, which it catches by protruding its long sticky tongue. It is nearly allied to the Ornithorhynchus, the two forming a peculiar class of animals, having in their structure some peculiarities at once of mammals, birds, and reptiles. In 1884 it was found, that, as Geoffrey St Hilaire had suspected, the echidna and ornithorhynchus, although essentially mammals, were yet oviparous, producing their young from eggs.
The pangolin or scaly anteater is a large mammal of the genus Manis, order Pholidota found in tropical Asia and Africa. The body, with the exception of the underside and the inner sides of the limbs, is covered by overlapping horny scales, between which are a few scattered hairs. When alarmed the animals roll themselves up into a ball, so as to present only the scales to the foe. The head is small, long, and pointed, and lodges the worm-like tongue, which is capable of being protruded to a great distance. The external ear is minute, as are also the eyes. Teeth are absent. The short limbs bear five toes on each foot, armed with claws which are best developed on the fore feet. On these feet the third toe is the largest, and bears a very powerful claw, which is the main agent used in burrowing and opening ant-hills. They are nocturnal and feed chiefly on termites. Research Pangolin
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Matt and Leela Probert
Abbreviations
Research Anteater
