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No. The anteater’s “trunk” is, in fact, its snout, whose elongated shape allows it to hunt ants and termites, its favorite foods, in holes in the ground or in logs. “Thanks to its keen sense of smell, the anteater finds the nests of these insects and then uses its long, sticky tongue to devour them,” says veterinarian Flávia Miranda, coordinator of the NGO Projeto Tamanduá, which fights for the preservation of the animal. In addition to having a very peculiar snout, anteaters have another strange feature: they are the only toothless mammals on the planet. They are part of the same order as armadillos and sloths and are divided into four species: lesser anteater, anteater, Mexican anteater and giant anteater. The largest of them is the latter, which can weigh 60 kilos and reach 1.20 meters in length – apart from the tail, which is around 1 meter.
With its long snout, the anteater eats up to 30,000 insects a day.
1. Possessing poor eyesight and hearing, the anteater relies even on its keen sense of smell to locate the nests of ants and termites
2. When it finds it, it uses its strong front claws to open the anthill or termite mound
3. After opening the hole, he sticks his snout in there to capture the insects. The snout of the giant anteater, for example, measures about 35 centimeters
4. With quick movements of the tongue, he brings the food to his mouth, whose opening is only 4 centimeters. The tongue, which reaches 60 centimeters, is attached to the breast bone, which ensures power to the hunting instrument.
5. The task is facilitated by the sticky saliva released by a highly developed gland, almost the size of your chest.
6. As it has no teeth, it swallows insects without chewing. And it never destroys the entire nest, to guarantee the next day’s food.