Editing Aardwolf (section)

==Behavior and ecology==
[[Image:Aardwolf.jpg|thumb|left|Aardwolf at the [[San Antonio Zoo and Aquarium|San Antonio Zoo]]]]
Aardwolves are shy and [[nocturnal animal|nocturnal]], sleeping in burrows by day.<ref name=EB/> They will, on occasion during the winter, become diurnal feeders. This happens during the coldest periods as they then stay in at night to conserve heat.<ref name=br30>{{harvnb|Brottman|2012|p=30}}</ref>

They are primarily solitary animals, though during mating season they form [[monogamous pairing in animals|monogamous pairs]] which occupy a territory with their young.<ref name="Richardson">Richardson, P. R. K. "[https://journals.co.za/content/sajsci/83/7/AJA00382353_5361?crawler=true&mimetype=application/pdf Aardwolf mating system: overt cuckoldry in an apparently monogamous mammal]." South African Journal of Science 83.7 (1987): 405.</ref><ref name="koel">{{harvnb|Koehler|Richardson|1990|p=4}}</ref> If their territory is infringed upon by another aardwolf, they will chase the intruder away for up to {{convert|400|m|ft|abbr=on}}<ref name=PKR/> or to the border.<ref name=mh108/> If the intruder is caught, which rarely happens,<ref name=mh108/> a fight will occur, which is accompanied by soft clucking,<ref name=br31/> hoarse barking, and a type of roar.<ref name=PKR/> The majority of incursions occur during mating season, when they can occur once or twice per week.<ref name=PKR/> When food is scarce, the stringent territorial system may be abandoned and as many as three pairs may occupy a single territory.<ref name=PKR/>

The territory is marked by both sexes, as they both have developed anal glands from which they extrude a black substance that is smeared on rocks or grass stalks in {{convert|5|mm|in|adj=on}}-long streaks.<ref name=PKR/> Aardwolves also have scent glands on the forefoot and penile pad.<ref>Stoeckelhuber, Mechthild, Alexander Sliwa, and Ulrich Welsch. "[http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/1097-0185(20000701)259:3%3C312::AID-AR80%3E3.0.CO;2-X/full Histo-physiology of the scent-marking glands of the penile pad, anal pouch, and the forefoot in the aardwolf (Proteles cristatus)]." The anatomical record 259.3 (2000): 312-326.</ref> They often mark near termite mounds within their territory every 20 minutes or so. If they are patrolling their territorial boundaries, the marking frequency increases drastically, to once every {{convert|50|m|ft|abbr=on}}. At this rate, an individual may mark 60 marks per hour,<ref name=PKR/> and upwards of 200 per night.<ref name=mh108/>

An aardwolf pair's territory may have up to 10 dens, and numerous [[Midden#Other definitions|midden]]s where they dig small holes and bury their feces with sand.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Estes |first=Richard |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g977LsZHpcsC&pg=PA347 |title=The Behavior Guide to African Mammals: Including Hoofed Mammals, Carnivores, Primates |date=1991 |publisher=University of California Press |isbn=978-0-520-08085-0 |language=en}}</ref> Their dens are usually abandoned [[aardvark]], [[springhare]], or [[Old World porcupine|porcupine]] dens,<ref name=br31>{{harvnb|Brottman|2012|p=31}}</ref> or on occasion they are crevices in rocks. They will also dig their own dens, or enlarge dens started by [[springhare]]s.<ref name=PKR/> They typically will only use one or two dens at a time, rotating through all of their dens every six months. During the summer, they may rest outside their den during the night and sleep underground during the heat of the day.

Aardwolves are not fast runners nor are they particularly adept at fighting off predators. Therefore, when threatened, the aardwolf may attempt to mislead its foe by doubling back on its tracks. If confronted, it may raise its mane in an attempt to appear more menacing. It also emits a foul-smelling liquid from its anal glands.<ref name=Colliers/>

===Feeding===
The aardwolf feeds primarily on termites and more specifically on ''[[Trinervitermes]]''.<ref name=mh71>{{harvnb|Mills|Harvey|2001|p=71}}</ref> This genus of termites has different species throughout the aardwolf's range. In East Africa, they eat ''[[Trinervitermes bettonianus]]'', in central Africa, they eat ''[[Trinervitermes rhodesiensis]]'', and in southern Africa, they eat ''[[Trinervitermes trinervoides|T. trinervoides]]''.<ref name=EB/><ref name=mh71/><ref name=PKR>{{harvnb|Richardson|Bearder|1984|pp=158–159}}</ref> Their technique consists of licking them off the ground as opposed to the [[aardvark]], which digs into the mound.<ref name=br30/> They locate their food by sound and also from the scent secreted by the soldier termites.<ref name=PKR/> An aardwolf may consume up to 250,000 [[termites]] per night using its long, broad, sticky tongue.<ref name=mh71/><ref name="wff" />

They do not destroy the termite mound or consume the entire colony, thus ensuring that the termites can rebuild and provide a continuous supply of food. They often memorize the location of such nests and return to them every few months.<ref name=br31/> During certain seasonal events, such as the onset of the rainy season and the cold of midwinter, the primary termites become scarce, so the need for other foods becomes pronounced. During these times, the southern aardwolf will seek out ''[[Hodotermes mossambicus]]'', a type of [[harvester termite]]<ref name=PKR/> active in the afternoon, which explains some of their diurnal behavior in the winter.<ref name=mh71/> The eastern aardwolf, during the rainy season, subsists on termites from the genera ''[[Odontotermes]]'' and ''[[Macrotermes]]''.<ref name=mh71/> They are also known to feed on other insects and larvae, and, some sources mention, very occasionally small mammals and birds, but these constitute a very small percentage of their total diet.<ref name=PKR/> They use their wide tongues to lap surface foraging termites off of the ground and consume large quantities of sand in the process, which aids in digestion in the absence of teeth to break down their food.<ref name=Anderson1992>{{Cite journal |last1=Anderson |first1=M. D. |last2=Richardson |first2=P. R. K. |last3=Woodall |first3=P. F. |date=1992 |title=Functional analysis of the feeding apparatus and digestive tract anatomy of the aardwolf ''Proteles cristatus'' |journal=Journal of Zoology |volume=228 |issue=3 |pages=423–434 |doi=10.1111/j.1469-7998.1992.tb04445.x}}</ref>

Unlike other [[hyena]]s, aardwolves do not scavenge or kill larger animals.<ref name=w1/><ref name=br31/> Contrary to popular myths, aardwolves do not eat carrion, and if they are seen eating while hunched over a dead carcass, they are actually eating larvae and beetles.<ref name=w1/> Also, contrary to some sources, they do not like meat, unless it is finely ground or cooked for them.<ref name=w1/> The adult aardwolf was formerly assumed to forage in small groups,<ref name=Colliers/> but more recent research has shown that they are primarily solitary foragers,<ref name=koel/> necessary because of the scarcity of their insect prey. Their primary source, ''Trinervitermes'', forages in small but dense patches of {{cvt|25|-|100|cm}}.<ref name=PKR/> While foraging, the aardwolf can cover about {{cvt|1|km}} per hour, which translates to {{cvt|8|-|12|km}} per summer night and {{cvt|3|-|8|km}} per winter night.<ref name=w1/>

===Breeding===
The [[breeding season]] varies depending on location, but normally takes place during autumn or spring. In South Africa, breeding occurs in early July.<ref name=mh108/> During the breeding season, unpaired male aardwolves search their own territory, as well as others, for a female to mate with. Dominant males also mate opportunistically with the females of less dominant neighboring aardwolves,<ref name=mh108/> which can result in conflict between rival males.<ref name=ingo/> Dominant males even go a step further and as the breeding season approaches, they make increasingly greater and greater incursions onto weaker males' territories. As the female comes into [[oestrus]], they add pasting to their tricks inside of the other territories, sometimes doing so more in rivals' territories than their own.<ref name=mh108/> Females will also, when given the opportunity, mate with the dominant male, which increases the chances of the dominant male guarding "his" cubs with her.<ref name=mh108/> [[Copulation (zoology)|Copulation]] lasts between 1 and 4.5 hours.<ref name="Richardson"/><ref>{{cite thesis |author=Sliwa, A. |year=1996 |title=A functional analysis of scent marking and mating behaviour in the aardwolf ''Proteles cristatus''s (Sparrman, 1783) |type=PhD |publisher=University of Pretoria |place=Pretoria |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/35640520}}</ref>

[[Gestation]] lasts between 89 and 92 days,<ref name=ingo/><ref name=mh108/> producing two to five [[List of animal names|cubs]] (most often two or three) during the rainy season (October–December),<ref name=Colliers/> when termites are more active.<ref name=EB/> They are born with their eyes open, but initially are helpless,<ref name=PKR/> and weigh around {{cvt|200|-|350|g}}.<ref name=ingo/> The first six to eight weeks are spent in the [[Burrow|den]] with their parents.<ref name=br31/> The male may spend up to six hours a night watching over the cubs while the mother is out looking for food.<ref name=mh108/><ref name=PKR/> After three months, they begin supervised foraging, and by four months are normally independent, though they often share a den with their mother until the next breeding season.<ref name=br31/> By the time the next set of cubs is born, the older cubs have moved on.<ref name=mh108/> Aardwolves generally achieve [[sexual maturity]] at one and a half to two years of age.<ref name=ingo/>