Aardvarks

Tubulidentata is a member of the Eukarya domain, the Animalia kingdom, Chordata phylum, and Mammalia class, Tubulidentata order, Orycteropodidae family, and the Eutheria subclass and contains only one living species, the Orycteropus afer, or aardvark ("Taxonomic Summary;" "Tubulidentata"). Eutheria consists of animals that have placentas, including "all mammals except monotremes and marsupials" ("Eutheria," 2008). The order is unique because of the unusual teeth that its members have("numerous hexagonal prisms of dentine surrounding tubular pulp cavities" ("Tubulidentata"). Aardvarks are found in Africa and live in the savannas, grasslands, woodlands, and bush, but do not live in the desert, because there is nothing there for them to eat (Armen, 2007). They like to eat small insects, primarily ants and termites, but they also feed on plants (Armen, 2007; "Tubulidentata"). The word "aardvark" is an Afrikaner word meaning "earth hog," which refers to the fact that it resembles a pig, alth

Category: Science - A