Head to head
Giant Pangolin vs Giant Anteater
The giant pangolin and the giant anteater both evolved to eat enormous quantities of ants and termites, but on entirely different continents, arriving independently at very different bodies, one covered in protective scales, the other armed with slashing claws.
| Giant Pangolin | Giant Anteater | |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific name | Smutsia gigantea | Myrmecophaga tridactyla |
| Diet | Insectivore, ants and termites | Insectivore, ants and termites |
| Body covering | Protective overlapping scales | Shaggy fur, no scales |
| Defence | Rolls into a protective ball | Rears up and slashes with claws |
| Size | The largest pangolin species | The largest anteater species |
| Tongue length | Long and sticky | Up to about 60 cm |
| Native range | Central and West Africa | Central and South America |
| Conservation status | Endangered | Vulnerable |
Giant Pangolin vs Giant Anteater: common questions
How do the giant pangolin and giant anteater defend themselves differently?
The giant pangolin rolls into a tight, armoured ball of overlapping scales, while the giant anteater instead rears onto its hind legs and slashes with powerful claws, an attack strong enough to have killed jaguars in the wild.
Which has the longer tongue, the giant pangolin or the giant anteater?
The giant anteater, whose tongue can reach up to about 60 centimetres, among the longest of any mammal relative to body size, though the giant pangolin also uses a long, sticky tongue to extract insects.
Are the giant pangolin and giant anteater related?
No, despite their similar ant-eating lifestyle, they belong to entirely different mammal groups on different continents, a case of convergent evolution rather than close kinship.