202 NATURAL HISTORY ESSAYS 



America, the great anteater is essentially a beast of 

 the primeval forest, frequenting swampy regions near 

 creeks. One would have supposed this preposterous 

 looking creature to have been the last in the world 

 to have any aquatic or scansorial habits ; yet it not 

 only swims well, but even climbs with facility. It 

 has a dislike to showers of rain, and is said 

 if caught in the wet to stand still, holding over it its 

 great tail as a natural and very efficient umbrella. 

 The tamanoir sleeps during a good deal of the day, 

 when its ever-useful brush serves as a counterpane ; 

 the hairs springing from the upper and under surface 

 of the tail (like fronds from the midrib of a fern) are 

 excellently adapted for a coverlet. The South 

 American Indians hunt the anteater for food^ and 

 occasionally themselves fall victims to the tremendous 

 claws of their quarry. The anteater has two methods 

 of defence — by rearing itself up bear fashion and 

 rending its adversary to pieces, or by throwing itself 

 on its back like a wounded hawk, thus leaving 

 all four feet at liberty. Only a single young one 

 is born at a time. The mother carries her quaint 

 offspring on her back ; it accompanies her for many 

 months and even after it has beo^un to feed on 

 insects. These animals are said to take four years 

 to attain adult size. The value of an anteater skin 



1 Tlie late Professor Moseley relates that he once saw at Feira St. Anna, 

 near Bahia, at least a dozen individuals of the allied tamandua anteaters 

 offered for sale. The skulls of all were split open; they were spitted on 

 skewers and had been roasted ready for eating. 



