Animal Talk

wildthings

Ground pangolin

The scaly ant eater that needs protection

Text: Mientjie Kleinhans | Photography: Hein Myers Photography, Foto Mous, Frank60, Maggy Meyer

O

ne of the weirdest-looking creatures

in Africa is the ground pangolin, or

Cape pangolin. Although he has

four feet, he often walks on his hind legs

with his shorter, clawed front legs close to

his body. His is covered in brown keratin

scales that overlap. He curls up into a ball

of armoured scales to protect himself and

the mother protects her baby by curling

around him.

If you see a pangolin in real life, consider

yourself very lucky, as they are nocturnal

animals and considered vulnerable,

according to the International Union for

the Conservation of Nature’s 2016 Red List

of Mammals.

The pangolin’s head is very

small in relation to his body.

▲

Vulnerable:

The species might

become endangered

without human

intervention.

Some other species

of pangolin are

already critically

endangered.

80cm

body length

15-18kg

weight