What Do Aardvarks Eat? Their 4 Favorite Foods

A sub-saharan African animal, the aardvark is a specialized eater. It is known for being a picky insectivore, and is also nocturnal. This long-snouted animal has strong claws, short legs, and an incredibly long tongue.

So, what do aardvarks eat? Aardvarks eat ants, termites, other insects, and cucumbers. You may be surprised to see cucumbers on this list, but there is a specific type of African cucumber that grows in the desert. Aardvarks love this variety of cucumber.

But why are aardvarks such picky eaters? And do they have any natural predators in the wild? Let’s learn more about what aardvarks eat now. 

What Does an Aardvark Eat?

An aardvark eats ants, termites, very few other insects, and African cucumbers. This makes an aardvark primarily an insectivore, with herbivore tendencies. The African cucumber that aardvarks love is also commonly known as the aardvark cucumber.

Aardvarks are picky eaters, but this does not mean they don’t consume a lot of what they love. The average Aardvark has been known to eat roughly 40 to 50 thousand ants or termites in a single evening. That’s a lot of bugs! 

While termites are known for eating through wood, they are also known to bite their predators. However, aardvarks are covered in very tough skin that protects them from the harsh bites from many many termites. 

A Complete List of 4 Foods Aardvarks Eat

An aardvark eats the following things:

• Termites
• Ants
• African cucumbers
• Other soft insect species

As previously mentioned, they are incredibly picky eaters, but these animals will eat other insects if ant and termite populations appear to be in decline. They come out at night to hunt and forage, when the temperatures are cooler.

Aardvarks mainly find their food sources underground with their powerful nose. Their nose looks like an elongated pig nose, and it is highly adept at sniffing out prey.

Aardvarks also don’t have the best eyesight, which could be another reason they come out at night. They rely heavily on their nose and tongue to find food. Speaking of tongues, their tongues can reach up to one foot long.

Let’s learn more about how an aardvark eats now.

How Does an Aardvark Eat?

An aardvark eats by using its nose to find ants and termites either in their nests or underground. They have very powerful claws on their feet, allowing them to dig through dry and compacted desert soil.

Not only is their nose a powerful sniffing tool, it comes equipped with fine as well as thick hairs that block dirt and sand from entering the aardvark’s airways. This is an incredibly useful tool as the aardvark eats. 

An aardvark’s tongue is its main weapon when it comes time to eat thousands of ants or termites at once. Their tongue is surprisingly sticky, and ants and termites don’t stand a chance if they get trapped in it. 

Aardvarks also hunt in a meandering sort of way. They walk in a zig zag or back and forth pattern that allows them to both smell and listen for prey beneath the surface. An aardvark’s tracks no doubt look strange along the compacted sand and dirt of the desert!

How Much Does an Aardvark Eat?

An aardvark can eat as many as 50,000 ants or termites in a single evening. An aardvark eats its bugs whole, using a muscle in its stomach to chew and digest the ants and termites it consumes.

Depending on the size and age of the aardvark, it eats either more or less than this. It also depends on the availability of food. Given that they are such picky eaters, an aardvark likely eats far fewer insects of other species.

Aardvarks can reach almost five feet in length, and weigh over a hundred pounds when fully grown. They can stand on their hind legs and reach food with their long tongues if it happens to be above ground. 

Given that aardvarks live in a desert climate, they have adapted to receive most of their hydration and water needs from the insects they eat. This is why it is very important for an aardvark to eat an adequate amount of ants or termites in a single day. 

This may also be why aardvarks love African cucumbers. These foods are packed with hydration and valuable minerals. An aardvark also passes the seeds from these cucumbers with ease, leading to more cucumber growth in an ecosystem.

What Eats Aardvarks? Common Predators

The aardvark has many common predators including: 

• Leopards
• Hyenas
• Wild dogs
• Lions
• Cheetahs
• Pythons
• Humans

Given their relative inability to escape, aardvarks are common prey for many big cat species. However, their large and powerful ears are capable of hearing predators from far in the distance. Sometimes this is enough to warn an aardvark that a threat is coming.

Humans are also a large threat to aardvarks. Many people believe that aardvarks have healing abilities, and they are also hunted for their meat. Aardvarks are also threatened in terms of their habitat being taken away from them or otherwise destroyed.

Aardvarks are not entirely helpless however. They are capable of fighting back, should a predator sneak up on them. They have very sharp claws and can run away if need be, though they will not be faster than a cheetah, of course!

Aardvarks can also dig faster than you may expect, and can potentially escape this way if they already have a tunnel started. Aardvarks have a fairly powerful tail and can lash out with that as well, or even close off a dirt tunnel behind them. 

The photo featured at the top of this post is © Heather Paul / CC BY-ND 2.0, Flickr – License / Original