Aardwolf Trivia

The aardwolf’s scientific name, Proteles cristata, orginates from Greek and Latin and refers to the five digits on its forepaws and its long, dorsal crest.

As a carnivore, the aardwolf’s favorite food is insects, especially termites, which it helps to control.

The mandibular salivary glands of the aardwolf are twice the size of the glands of a similar-sized dog.

The aardwolf is listed as “Least Concern” with a stable population trend on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.

Despite its relatedness to the hyaenids, the aardwolf is one of only 18 species of the over 4,000 living mammal species that feed exclusively on termites and is one of the few true mammalian myrmecophages.

The aardwolf feeds exclusively on termites and is one of the few true mammalian myrmecophages.

A group of aardwolves is called a cackle or clan.

A group of aardwolves is called a cackle or clan.

The aardwolf is listed as “Least Concern” with a stable population trend on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.

Aardwolves cannot be caught with food-baited traps, but may be lured with scent-marks of other aardwolves.

As an insectivorous carnivore, the aardwolf’s favorite food is insects, especially termites, which it helps to control.

Aardwolves are solitary foragers, except when accompanying their young cubs. Even within mated pairs, individual aardwolves forage away from one another. The un-weaned young are the only individuals that will be tolerated to accompany an adult when foraging, but even 4-month-old cubs spend most of the night foraging alone.

The aardwolf has a black mane extending from head to tail which it erects when threatened to appear larger. During fights and chases, the aardwolf’s mane is fully erected. If only slightly disturbed, the aardwolf just fluffs out the hairs of the tail. This is frequently seen in cubs while playing.

The aardwolf has a black mane extending from head to tail which it erects when threatened to appear larger. During fights and chases, the aardwolf’s mane is fully erected. If only slightly disturbed, the aardwolf just fluffs out the hairs of the tail. This is frequently seen in cubs while playing.

The aardwolf has a black mane extending from head to tail which it erects when threatened to appear larger. During fights and chases, the aardwolf’s mane is fully erected. If only slightly disturbed, the aardwolf just fluffs out the hairs of the tail. This is frequently seen in cubs while playing.

Aardwolf cubs are raised in dens, often old aardvark, porcupine, or springhare burrows.

Aardwolf cubs are raised in dens, often old aardvark, porcupine, or springhare burrows.

Aardwolf cubs are raised in dens, often old aardvark, porcupine, or springhare burrows.

Although aardwolves are socially monogamous and often live together in pairs, they’re genetically polygynous and mating is not necessarily exclusive. Mated aardwolf pairs occupy the same perennial territory together with their most recent offspring, but copulations are not necessarily exclusive within the pair. Extra-pair copulations regularly occur between the most aggressive males and females of less aggressive neighbors in a polygynous fashion.

The aardwolf is primarily nocturnal as its activity is determined by the activity of the termites it eats.

A single aardwolf can consume as many as 300,000 termites in a single night and up to 105,000,000 within a year.

Both sexes of the aardwolf scent-mark their territories, a behavior sometimes called pasting.

The aardwolf is tolerant of the noxious secretions of the soldier termites it feeds on.

The black-backed jackal is the aardwolf’s greatest natural enemy. Aardwolves frequently have aggressive territorial disputes with the canines and chase the jackals from their breeding dens.

Aardwolves cannot kill livestock, yet many are killed by fearful farmers each year.

At about 1-year old, when the next year’s cubs have emerged from the den, aardwolf offspring start making excursions into neighboring territories. Once they have finally left, they seldom return, becoming transients in search of vacant territories elsewhere in the region.

At 45-50cm (18-20in) tall and 85-105cm (33-41in) long, the aardwolf is the smallest of the hyena species and is significantly smaller than all other hyenas.

The aardwolf has very large ears and eyes for its size, adapted for its nocturnal lifestyle.

The mucous secretions of the aardwolf’s salivary glands could provide protection for the oral cavity and oesophagous from the termites’ terpene secretions, as has been speculated to be the case in myrmecophagous elephant shrews.

Aardwolves are socially monogamous and family oriented, with males and females living together in a territory. Mated aardwolf pairs generally occupy the same perennial territory together with their most recent offspring.

Unlike other members of the Hyaenidae family, aardwolves have five digits on their front feet and four on their hind feet.

There is no sexual dimorphism in the body size of the aardwolf; both male and the female aardwolves are roughly the same size with no striking differences.

Aardwolves are endemic to the continent of Africa and can be found in two separate populations, one in the South and another in the Northeast.

Male aardwolves help in rearing the young by guarding the den against black-backed jackals. Guarding the den from black-backed jackals is necessary for aardwolf cub survival, but is energetically costly to the male. Thus, males could not be expected to guard cubs unless some are his offspring.

The aardwolf superficially resembles the striped hyaena, but it’s less than half the size and its stripes are much more regular.

The coarse hairs of the aardwolf’s dorsal crest are the longest of all carnivores and stand at about 20cm (8in) on the shoulders.

Whereas hyenas have a powerful dentition and are able to crush large bones, the aardwolf has a slender skull with strong jaws and canine teeth, but the cheekteeth are reduced to small, widely spaced and irregularly numbered redundant pegs.

Unlike most other ant- or termite-eating mammals, which have to dig to access their prey, the aardwolf licks termites from the soil surface using its broad, sticky tongue.

At 45-50cm (18-20in) tall and 85-105cm (33-41in) long, the aardwolf is slightly larger than a jackal or a fox.

The aardwolf is categorized in the Hyaenidae family and is thus related to hyaenids.

There are two separate populations separated into two different subspecies, of aardwolves, one located in southern Africa and the other in northeastern Africa. The southern population of aardwolves, Proteles cristata cristata, ranges over most of southern Africa, extending into the countries of South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, southern Angola, southern Zambia, and southwestern Mozambique. 1,500 kilometers away, a northern population, Proteles cristata septentrionalis, ranges from central Tanzania through northeastern Uganda, Kenya, Somalia, along the coast of Ethiopia and Sudan, and the southeastern tip of Egypt.

The aardwolf’s common name means “earth-wolf” in Afrikaans and Dutch.

Both sexes of aardwolves scent-mark, although males mark more frequently than females, pasting on average more than two times per 100 meters.

Aardwolves are endemic to the continent of Africa and are found in grasslands, savannas, and shrublands.

Aardwolves are endemic to the continent of Africa and are found in grasslands, savannas, and shrublands.

Aardwolves are endemic to the continent of Africa and are found in grasslands, savannas, and shrublands.

Aardwolves cannot be caught with food-baited traps, but may be lured with scent-marks of other aardwolves.

Unlike most other ant- or termite-eating mammals, which have to dig to access their prey, the aardwolf licks termites from the soil surface using its broad, sticky tongue.

Aardwolves frequently have aggressive territorial disputes with black-backed jackals, their greatest natural enemy, and chase the jackals from their breeding dens.

Aardwolves cannot kill livestock, yet many are killed by fearful farmers each year. Some farmers believe aardwolves prey on their lambs and shoot them at every opportunity. Aardwolves are also killed indirectly through insecticide spraying. More aardwolves are probably killed indiscriminately by packs of dogs used to hunt jackals and foxes.

Aardwolves cannot kill livestock, yet many are killed by fearful farmers each year. Some farmers believe aardwolves prey on their lambs and shoot them at every opportunity. Aardwolves are also killed indirectly through insecticide spraying. More aardwolves are probably killed indiscriminately by packs of dogs used to hunt jackals and foxes.

Aardwolves cannot kill livestock, yet many are killed by fearful farmers each year. Some farmers believe aardwolves prey on their lambs and shoot them at every opportunity. Aardwolves are also killed indirectly through insecticide spraying. More aardwolves are probably killed indiscriminately by packs of dogs used to hunt jackals and foxes.

The aardwolf is primarily nocturnal as its activity is determined by the activity of the termites it eats.

The use of the aardwolf’s canines for fighting is clearly reflected in their wear, as in old animals they are broken down to rounded stumps.

There are two separate populations separated into two different subspecies, of aardwolves, one located in southern Africa and the other in northeastern Africa. The southern population of aardwolves, Proteles cristata cristata, ranges over most of southern Africa, extending into the countries of South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, southern Angola, southern Zambia, and southwestern Mozambique. 1,500 kilometers away, a northern population, Proteles cristata septentrionalis, ranges from central Tanzania through northeastern Uganda, Kenya, Somalia, along the coast of Ethiopia and Sudan, and the southeastern tip of Egypt.

There are two separate populations separated into two different subspecies, of aardwolves, one located in southern Africa and the other in northeastern Africa. The southern population of aardwolves, Proteles cristata cristata, ranges over most of southern Africa, extending into the countries of South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, southern Angola, southern Zambia, and southwestern Mozambique. 1,500 kilometers away, a northern population, Proteles cristata septentrionalis, ranges from central Tanzania through northeastern Uganda, Kenya, Somalia, along the coast of Ethiopia and Sudan, and the southeastern tip of Egypt.

At about 1-year old, when the next year’s cubs have emerged from the den, aardwolf offspring start making excursions into neighboring territories. Once they have finally left, they seldom return, becoming transients in search of vacant territories elsewhere in the region. If an aardwolf parent dies, however, a cub of the same sex usually remains in its natal territory.

The aardwolf’s scientific name is “Proteles cristata”. “Proteles” comes from two words, both of Greek origin, “protos” and “teleos” which combined means “complete in front” based on the fact that the aardwolf has five toes on its front feet and four on the rear, unlike other members of the Hyaenidae family. The specific name, “cristatus”, comes from Latin and means “provided with a comb”, relating to the aardwolf’s long mane.

The aardwolf’s scientific name is Proteles cristata. Proteles comes from two words, both of Greek origin, protos and teleos which combined means complete in front based on the fact that the aardwolf has five toes on its front feet and four on the rear, unlike other members of the Hyaenidae family. The specific name, cristatus, comes from Latin and means provided with a comb, relating to the aardwolf’s long mane.

The record lifespan for an aardwolf is 18 years 11 months. The oldest aardwolf was kept in captivity at the Frankfurt Zoo.

The aardwolf’s common name means “earth-wolf” in Afrikaans and Dutch. It is also called “maanhaar-jackal”, Afrikaans for “mane-jackal”, or “civet hyena”, based on its habit of secreting substances from its anal gland, a characteristic shared with the African civet.

The aardwolf’s common name means “earth-wolf” in Afrikaans and Dutch. It is also called “maanhaar-jackal”, Afrikaans for “mane-jackal”, or “civet hyena”, based on its habit of secreting substances from its anal gland, a characteristic shared with the African civet.

The aardwolf’s common name means “earth-wolf” in Afrikaans and Dutch. It is also called “maanhaar-jackal”, Afrikaans for “mane-jackal”, or “civet hyena”, based on its habit of secreting substances from its anal gland, a characteristic shared with the African civet.

Aardwolves feed primarily on nasute harvester termites, mainly on Trinervitermes bettonianus in East Africa, Trinervitermes rhodesiensis in Zimbabwe and Botswana, and Trinervitermes trinervoides in South Africa.

The aardwolf is considered one of the indicator species for the Somalia-Kalahari semidesert axis. The aardwolf’s distribution in the Somalia-Kalahari semidesert axis of Africa appears to be related to the area’s ancient climatic history, as these two areas were joined in drier periods. They are now separated by wetter woodlands in Zambia.