At the Tikki Hywood
Foundation’s rescue
center, in Zimbabwe,
each pangolin—like
Tamuda, seen here—is
assigned a caretaker.
The pangolins form
close bonds with their
humans, who help them
learn how to feed on
ants and termites. Res-
cued as a baby, Tamuda
was stubborn and imp-
ish, his caretaker says.He’s the size
of a golden
retrıever puppy
and covered
with scales.
With his tail stretched out parallel to the ground
for balance, Tamuda holds his little arms in front
of him like a T. re x.
The caretaker gently guides the young pango-
lin toward a dirt mound that he starts to break
apart with a pick. Look, he encourages Tamuda:
ants. Tamuda catches on and begins to eat, his
nearly body-length tongue searching the crev-
ices, his long claws mimicking the pick.
After a few minutes of eating, it’s time to move
on. Tamuda lumbers a little farther. The care-
taker shows him a new ant mound. This time
the pangolin isn’t interested. He flops on his side
like a toddler about to throw a tantrum. He curls
his body around the boot of the caretaker, who
bends down and gently tries to peel him off, but
Tamuda wants attention.
Looking up into his human’s face, he reaches
high, begging to be picked up. The caretaker
tries to be strict—he’s supposed to be teaching
Tamuda how to fend for himself—but the plea is
too much to resist. As any good pangolin mother
would do, he lifts Tamuda up and cradles him.
Tamuda’s lesson was taking place at the
Tikki Hywood Foundation, a rescue center near
Harare, Zimbabwe, where pangolins freed fromWILDLIFE WATCH84 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC