Meet S’pore Night Safari Member which Look like a Kangaroo with Pig Nose
The Night Safari has a new resident recently which is the Aardvark, is a nocturnal animal which has a pretty interesting appearance, where it has a pig-like nose, rabbit-like ear, and kangaroo tails. And the best thing is, it is not even related close to these animals but instead, it is the only living species of the order of Mammalia, Tubulidentata. And it’s the closest relative is the African elephants and sea cows.
“Aardvark” means “earth pig” in South Africa’s Afrikaans language and it is being threatened by hunters for their meat and currently are facing habitat loss in the wild. Aardvarks have an elongated snout and powerful claws where they can forage and dig through the grounds for termites as they are insectivores.
They also have longer hind legs while the forelegs have thicker claws which are good for digging. The aardvark that has just moved into Night Safari comes from Japan’s Higashiyama Zoo as part of an animal exchange program. And this 5 years old female is called Alika which means the most beautiful in Afrikaans languages.
The nutritionist at Wildlife Reserves Singapore has formulated a special blend of insectivore pellets, ant’s eggs, chicken eggs, omega-3 supplements sand to meet her nutritional needs and the exhibit will also create artificial termite mounds and logs to replicate her natural habitat.
