A baby Giant Anteater was recently born at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay to mom, Adelhi. For the first four months of this little guy’s life, he’ll hitch a ride on mom’s back until he’s ready to put that long schnoz to good ant-eating use:
Other fun facts from our friends at Busch Gardens: Giant Anteaters’ sense of smell is 40 times stronger than a human’s and allows them to find and eat up to 30,000 insects a day. And, they have tongues 2-freaking-feet long.
Keep the photos of “Barnacle” coming, Nick G! Photo by Matt Marriott/Busch Gardens Tampa Bay
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I’m tired, ma! Carreh meh!
plink plink eye capsules! tiny ears!!
Enh! Enh! Must… Hang… On!
two frickin feet long??? Where do they store all that tongue-age? Their head’s not that beeg!
and one more thing~~ Ma is rather stunning herself!!
Tee heeee heeee love him! He looks so snug.
I had no idea what I was looking at for a couple minutes there.
I love the pic with the shiny little baby eyes peering across her back. and I want to nibble the baby’s ears. so delectable looking! who knew anteaters were so nom-able?!
Isn’t this the most literal form of “Baby got back”?
Ur back! I haz it!
Hmmmmm; wonder what Maummee has to do in order to get the four month old babbeh off her back…. (OK, Jr., gedoffgedoffgedoffgedoff……..!)
Today’s posts are making … me… so … .tie….tie…zzzzzzzz
the eye capsules kill me.
Lookit the teeny schnozzle! So teeny! So schnozzy!!!!!
He vewwy tie tie.
Baby Camoflage WIN!
I had no idea anteaters had big frickin tails like that! That is a tail, on the left side of pic #1?
I’m amazed how they line up that dorsal stripe. I’m tempted to rename that barnacle a pocket pet, she’s so little! I wonder now if Nua has a baby book?
Eye capsules….so….heavy….so….tie-tie….zzzzzzz
Imagine the snorfing power of that cute little bugger!!!! :3
Oh, the haunches in the second pic!!! Love them!!!
It must be pretty boring to eat ants all day. Do anteaters ever get picky about their diet? “Oooh, don’t like the look of that one, too shiny! And that one’s limping a bit, don’t think I want to eat him. Is that an ant or is it a poppy seed? Can’t be too careful…” (Repeat 30,000 times)
And what if an anteater accidentally eats something that isn’t an ant? A little beetle, a fly, a speck of freshly ground pepper? Will it get a tummy ache?
I mean, really, the whole idea of a big furry animal that subsists on nothing but ants just goes to show the fundamental silliness of nature.
If anteaters have such a great sense of smell, I wonder if they could be trained to track things like bloodhounds do?
I mean, really, the whole idea of a big furry animal that subsists on nothing but ants just goes to show the fundamental silliness of nature. Kind of like gigantic whales that eat nothing but krill.
…anybody up for the whole self-contradiction bit?
ie:
“baby” Giant (anteater) — similar concept as Giant Shrimp, etc ….
Lovie! He’s so cute
The plinkie eyes are the best part. And the snorfable tiny earses. And his stripy fur.
can you imagine a killer dream (a la sleepwalking fail)?? poor kid might lose his grip!
@Katrina, are you here? I think I remember you wishing for a Giant Anteater tail.
Those are some serious eye capsules! Too cute!
Can we PLEEEEZE get a COXCU of the eye capsules?!
Holy…that tail is FOOFY. Grown-up anteaters are adorable as well.
I am here! YES! THAT is what I want- “money can’t get everything its true- and what it can’t get I can’t use, now give me a Giant Anteater’s Tail! That’s what I want! (That’s what I want)” I can’t stand the Beatles, so please play another version in your creative Peep brain, ok? THANK YOU CO!!!!!!!! A ‘Draf and a G.A. – and the miniminimini hamster-things and a geometrically perfect ground hog- thank you, I am having terrible day physically but emotionally ***a-la-la!***
I, if granted a tail, would want THIS kind of tail- who’s with me? Or, if granted a tail, what kind would you want?
Thanks Theresa, I love you, too.
I go to UCI and this is our mascot. Zot zot.
ZOT!!!
@Katrina, I believe the Beatles were covering a Carl Perkins tune.
No, not Carl Perkins, someone else. But definitely not an original Beatles tune.
In the tradition of the British Christmas pantomime,
Momma Anteater… “where’s my Baby?”
Audience… “It’s behind you”
Ma…”Where”
Audience…”It’s behind you”
Ma turning round…”Where”
Audience…”It’s behind you”
Ad infinitum.
Tiny anteater haunchlets omg!
hims is comfortabuhls on momma’s back. too cute.
Do we not all have days where we would gladly be carried around like that, with nothing to do but blink, burp and poo? Oh today was such a day . . .
*shoves baby over and crawls on mama anteater’s back . . . *
I really love anteaters, even as a child I wanted one. I got a whippet instead.
Yesterday I had the exterminator in the house as part of my long-running (mostly unsuccessful) battle with ants. Who knew all I needed was a qte anteater?
…I wonder if Walmart sells them……
superbunny-that is a fantastic substitution! Picture, please…
Yes, I bet all it would take is one itinerant Giant Anteater for most households- just think- what a great job! What a week or two? No harsh chemical smells, Heaven only knows what a Giant Anteater smells like. I wonder what the going rate is, I mean, besides the ants?
“Barnacle” <—ROFLMAO
“It’s behind you!!!” (dies laughing)
Giant anteaters are my most favorite animal. I’m squeeing on the inside. :3
That first shot felt familiar to me and then I realized: Twilight!
it is so oddly cute
The second mouseover killed me. Ha ha! I’m sure there’s a whole house full of frat boys dead on their feets!
He’s not giant yet.
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