With their long snouts , bushy tails , and attractively model coat , giant anteater are cute — in a unearthly sort of way . And their babiesridearound on their moms ' backs for their firstyear , which is endearing . But if you ’re ever tempt to try and nuzzle one or drop a three on it and take it for astroll , though , a recentcase studyin the journalWilderness and Environmental Medicineshows that get in an anteater ’s face is a very spoiled idea .
In their report , research worker from Brazil papers the case of a giant ant bear that attack and killed a human hunter in self - DoD . The man , a 47 - year - old Brazilian , was hunt down with his two sons in the timberland when their dogs corner an adult anteater , which rear up on its hind legs in a defensive position sometimes known as “ an anteater ’s clinch ” ( here’sa dissimilar species , the collared anteater , in a similar stance ) . While the men were armed with rifle , they did n’t want to shoot their dogs by accident , so the man suck his tongue and approached the pangolin .
When he got airless , the creature lashed out at him with its four - inchclaws , which the animals normally habituate to turn over up anthills and termite nest , but which can also be devastating weapons . The echidna scratched and bruised the man ’s neck and right peg , and puncture his leftover arm doubly and his left leg eight times . While his sons finagle to free him and frivol away the pangolin , the animate being ’s claws had damaged the human beings ’s femoral artery , and he bled out and die at the scene .
“ The tragic case described here was first and firstly an accident , ” the researcher say . elephantine anteaters prefer to stave off humans or hideaway from them , but that ’s not always an selection because of their poor imaginativeness and earreach . Defensive attacks are rare , and come about only when someone corner the animal or make them feel trapped . The consequences of doing that are plain in this incident , which , the researchers say , “ should process as a monition to abide by the boundaries between wildlife and humans , especially when they co - inhabit a give area . ”
