Head to head
Chinese Pangolin vs Pangolin
Chinese Pangolin
VS Pangolin
The Chinese pangolin and the Sunda pangolin, described on our Pangolin page, are both Critically Endangered Asian pangolins that eat ants and termites and are heavily trafficked, but they live in different places and move differently.
| Chinese Pangolin | Pangolin | |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific name | Manis pentadactyla | Manis javanica |
| Range | Southern China, Taiwan, and parts of Nepal, northeastern India, and Southeast Asia | Southeast Asia, including Myanmar, Thailand, Indochina, Malaysia, Sumatra, Borneo, and Java |
| Habitat | Forest and grassland | Forest, plantation, and gardens |
| Climbing and burrowing | Digs deep burrows in which it shelters by day | A capable climber that uses its prehensile tail and claws to reach tree-dwelling ants and sleeps in hollows |
| Tongue | Can be longer than its own body and is stored in a sheath within its chest | Up to 40 cm, anchored near the pelvis and longer than its head and body |
| Scales | Overlapping scales made of keratin, the same material as human fingernails | Keratin scales that make up about 20 percent of its body weight |
| Trafficking | One of the most trafficked wild mammals in the world | More than a million pangolins are thought to have been poached in the past decade |
| Conservation status | Critically Endangered, with a decreasing population | Critically Endangered, with a decreasing population |
Chinese Pangolin vs Pangolin: common questions
Which pangolin climbs trees?
The Sunda pangolin, which uses its prehensile tail and claws to reach tree-dwelling ants and sleeps in hollows.
Are both pangolins endangered?
Yes, both the Chinese pangolin and the Sunda pangolin are Critically Endangered.
What are pangolin scales made of?
Keratin, the same material as human fingernails.