How Long Is a Tamandua’s Tongue?

Tamanduas, also known as lesser anteaters, are smaller relatives of the giant anteater. They inhabit a wide range of environments, including tropical forests, scrublands, grasslands, and wetlands, and they are frequently found close to rivers and streams.

Southern tamanduas, scientifically known as Tamandua tetradactyla, are native to South America, with a range extending from Venezuela southward to northern Argentina. Northern tamanduas, Tamandua mexicana, occur from southern Mexico to northwestern Peru.

Tamanduas Have Remarkably Long, Sticky Tongues

The tamandua's specialized tongue is an excellent tool for collecting insects. It can reach nearly 16 inches in length, allowing the animal to probe deep inside narrow passages within termite mounds and ant colonies.

Tamanduas belong to the anteater suborder Vermilingua. The name Vermilingua means “worm-tongue,” a reference to the unusually long tongues shared by these insect-eating mammals.

They Can Consume Thousands of Insects Every Day

Tamanduas use their powerful claws to rip apart decaying logs and other structures where insects hide. Once they expose their prey, they use their long, sticky tongues to gather it.

Although they are called anteaters, their diet is not limited to ants. They also consume termites, mealworms, bees and honey, as well as the occasional piece of fruit.

Their mouths are extremely small and open to only about the width of a pencil eraser. Since tamanduas have no teeth, food is processed with the help of a muscular gizzard inside the stomach.

Their Tails Help Them Move Through Trees

Tamanduas are arboreal animals, meaning that they spend much of their lives in trees. Their prehensile tails are particularly useful when climbing because they can wrap around branches and provide additional support and balance.

The lower surface of the tail is hairless, which gives the animal a better grip when holding onto branches high above the ground.

Tamanduas Are Not Suitable Pets

Tamanduas may look unusual and fascinating, but they are highly specialized wild animals and are not appropriate household pets. They require specific care and living conditions that are difficult to provide in a normal home.

In certain places, keeping a tamandua without the appropriate license is illegal. Unfortunately, some animals die during illegal transportation associated with the exotic pet trade.

They Have a Powerful and Smelly Defense

Tamanduas can become targets for predators such as harpy eagles and large cats, including ocelots and jaguars. However, these small anteaters have several ways to defend themselves.

Their large claws and strong forelimbs can be used to resist an attacking predator. When threatened, tamanduas can also hiss and release a strong-smelling substance from their anal glands, creating an unpleasant deterrent that may cause predators to back away.

They Walk on the Sides of Their Feet

The enormous claws on a tamandua's feet make ordinary flat-footed walking difficult. Instead, these animals walk on the outer sides of their paws, keeping their large claws elevated as they move across the ground.

Although tamanduas generally remain on land when traveling outside trees, they are capable of swimming. In 2010, researchers documented an unusual observation of a northern tamandua swimming in the Panama Canal.

Mothers Carry Their Young on Their Backs

Tamanduas are sometimes mistaken for marsupials because mothers carry their young, but they are not related to marsupials such as koalas and wallabies. Tamanduas do not have pouches.

Instead, a mother carries her young pup directly on her back during the first few months of its life. Outside the breeding period, tamanduas are generally solitary animals.

Young tamanduas remain with their mothers for approximately one year. After becoming more independent, they eventually leave their mothers and begin living on their own.