Definitions

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun The typical genus of ant-eaters of the family Myrmecophagidæ. M. jubata is the great or maned ant-eater or ant-bear of South America. See cuts under ant-bear, Edentata, and xenarthral.
  • noun In ornithology, a genus of ant-birds: same as Formicarius.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • proper noun (Zool.) The type genus of the Myrmecophagidae; the South American ant bear.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • proper noun A taxonomic genus within the family Myrmecophagidae — the giant anteater.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun type genus of the Myrmecophagidae; South American ant bear

Etymologies

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Examples

  • Three species of ant-eaters (Myrmecophaga tridactyla, Cyclopes didactylus, and Tamandua tetradactyla), armadillos (Dasypus spp.), and deer (Mazama gouazoubira and M. americana) also inhabit this region.

    Solimões-Japurá moist forest 2008

  • Other threatened mammals include bush dog Speothos venaticus (V), giant anteater Myrmecophaga tridactyla (V) and Central American tapir Tapirus bairdii (V).

    Los Katíos National Park, Colombia 2008

  • The large intact grasslands of the savanna and surrounding habitats support diverse mammal populations which include giant anteater Myrmecophaga tridactyla (VU), giant armadillo Priodontes maximus (EN), jaguar Panthera onca, puma Puma concolor and Brazilian tapir Tapirus terrestris (VU).

    Canaima National Park, Venezuela 2009

  • Finally, I was amazed and delighted to discover a captive individual of one of my favourite mammals, the Giant anteater Myrmecophaga tridactyla.

    Archive 2006-05-01 Darren Naish 2006

  • Other species, such as giant anteater Myrmecophaga tridactyla (EN) and giant armadillo Priodontes maximus (EN), are found both in humid forests and in the drier habitats, but appear to reach their greatest population densities in the termite plains.

    Noel Kempff Mercado National Park, Bolivia 2008

  • Bush dog Speothos venaticus (V) and giant anteater Myrmecophaga tridactyla (V) have also been recorded.

    Iguacu National Park, Brazil 2008

  • Viable populations of the Jaguar Panthera onca (Lr), the Giant Armadillo Myrmecophaga tridactyla (EN) and the Giant River Otter Pteronura brasiliensis (VU) also exist in the nominated site.

    Central Suriname Nature Reserve, Suriname 2008

  • Among larger mammals, the jaguar (Panthera onca), the South American tapir (Tapirus terrestris), the giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla), and the ocelot (Felis pardalis) have been sighted, although their abundance is unknown.

    Coastal Venezuelan mangroves 2008

  • Two of the most unusual species are the giant armadillo (Priodontes maximus, EN) and the giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla, VU), which as the largest anteater in the world can grow up to 1.9 meters in length from nose to base of tail, with a huge flag-like tail that can be up to a meter long.

    Biological diversity in the Cerrado 2008

  • Small mammals are characteristic of area and include a mouse opossum (Marmosa xerophila), a vesper mouse (Calomys hummelincki) and the giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla).

    Apure-Villavicencio dry forests 2007

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