Southern tamandua
(Tamandua tetradactyla)
Individual
The individual in this release was a male. He came to the centre as a baby. He had been taken by illegal traffickers. They got discovered by the police, which in turn alerted the rescue centre. He had been in rehabilitation for around 9 months.
Housing and care
The individual was in a cage only during the nighttime. For the nighttime he was provided with ant nests, dead wood and termite nests. During the daylight hours he would go out with a caretaker. As a baby he would be guided to ant/termite nests and the caretaker would imitate the behaviour of the mom. This meant the caretakers literally had to put their faces in the nests and dig through them. As he got older, he found the nests himself and the caretaker would follow him to see how much he was intaking. This happened until he was old enough to go off by himself. At that stage he weighed around 2.5kg.
When he first arrived he was fed on a mixture of goats milk and wet cat food. This was gradually lowered down and ants/termites were mixed into his milk. He also got supplemented with vitamin K injections. This helps them with the coagulation of their blood. As in the wild they would feed on many different species of ants and termites and this is often hard to replicate in captivity.
Release site
A habitat assessment was executed to see if it was adequate for release. Several water sources have been located in around the of the release site, ant and termite nests were found around the site. As Southern tamanduas normally nests in tree cavities, the area was assessed for that as well. Furthermore, the release site is located at an altitude of 1300m above sea level. Southern tamanduas can be found up to 1600m above sea level. The site is composed of 60% secondary forest and 40% primary forest. This species can live in a disturbed habitat and can live in close proximity to humans. Trap cameras were used to assess which possible predators and competitors for food were present in the area. The main predators of the tamandua are big cats. Their main competitors are other tamanduas, and other tamanduas have been spotted in the release area. Other rescued animals can be found around the release site such as parrots, monkeys, and kinkajous. They can be a cause of stress or danger.
The release site is located within the wildlife rescue centre of Merazonia in Ecuador. This is an area of 100 hectares (250 acres). The rescue centre is located between two national parks (Llanganates National Park and Sangay National Park). Merazonia is located at an altitude of 1300m above sea level. The site is composed of 60% secondary forest and 40% primary forest.​
Pre-release adaptations
It was not needed to adapt from his normal routine too much. His progress was closely monitored and as he became more and more independent during his daily walks it was eventually decided he was ready for release. Since it is quite hard to fit anteaters with a wearable tracking collar it was decided not to do this. The expectation was that he would still be coming back to camp. He was tested for parasites before he was walked into the jungle and a general health check was performed. His behaviour was monitored every day since he arrived, and a change in attitude towards people was observed. He was now walking away from people and not wanting contact anymore. This is crucial for his release. Apart from that it was noted that he was finding sufficient amounts of food by himself, which was checked by means of his weight.
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Therefore, the criteria for this release were that he was finding a sufficient amount of food (measured by weekly weighing), was showing no interest in people and was in optimal condition.
Post-release
He would come back to the camp occasionally and upon return he would get a health check and his weight would be checked. If needed he got another vitamin K injection. After a couple of months he was seen less and less, but he occasionally still stops by. He is normally just looking for ants and termites and does not get into any man made stuff.
Things you would have done differently
He stays healthy and happy. He is very independent and most of the time he stays away for a long time. He still comes past occasionally, but does not cause any trouble. Therefore Merazonia thinks it's a successfull release and they would not have done anything differently.
