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aardwolf (AHRD-woolf) - n., a nocturnal insectivorous mammal (Proteles cristatus) of southern and eastern Africa resembling a small, striped hyena.
The resemblance being because hyenas are their closest relatives. The insects eaten are largely, but not entirely, termites. The name was borrowed in 1833 from Africaans, from Dutch, from aarde, earth + wolf, wolf, presumably because seeing canines digging into termite hills is uncommon enough to be distinctive.
---L.
The resemblance being because hyenas are their closest relatives. The insects eaten are largely, but not entirely, termites. The name was borrowed in 1833 from Africaans, from Dutch, from aarde, earth + wolf, wolf, presumably because seeing canines digging into termite hills is uncommon enough to be distinctive.
---L.
