Aardwolf

Aardwolf – Sustainability

illustration of an aardwolf by Ravenari

Keywords:

Sustainability, saving something for later, investments, successful long distance relationships, being reserved in your communication, only needing a couple of sentences to say what you mean, enjoying being on your own, successfully sustaining a solitary lifestyle, knowing how to balance friends with introspection, savannah and grassland wisdom, watching out for the small opportunities knowing they could turn into big ones.

General Description:

The aardwolf (meaning ‘earth wolf’ in Afrikaans/Dutch, also known as the maanhaar jackal) is an insectivorous mammal found in the scrublands, grasslands, savannah and open, dry lands of Eastern and Southern Africa, related to the hyena. They primarily feed on termites. They are nocturnal, resting during a burrow during the day. They primarily eat termites, and can eat more than 200,000 per night, assisted by their sticky tongue; they will also consume carrion and other small animals. They are very particular about not destroying entire mounds, to ensure future termite supply. Aardwolves are related to the hyena family.

They mark their territory with anal glands, and often occupy shared territories featuring multiple dens that will be used for about a month and a half at a time, they often prefer to use pre-existing burrows of aardvarks, porcupines and springhares. They are considered shy animals, and are primarily solitary in habit because of food scarcity, but do coexist in loosely monogamous pairs (cubs may be fathered by more than one male) and defend the same territory, males typically guard the den and females forage once the young have been born. They rarely vocalise, but will cluck or roar when stressed, fighting or startled. When startled, they will also sometimes secrete a foul odour/liquid. They negatively impacted by agriculture due to pesticides, despite being consider useful animals by farmers. They are also hunted for their fur, and threatened by encounters with domestic dogs.