Giant Pangolin

The giant pangolin (Smutsia gigantea) is the largest of the eight pangolin species, with adults reaching up to 1.4 meters in body length and weighing as much as 33 kilograms. Covered in overlapping keratin scales that account for roughly 20 percent of its body weight, it is primarily nocturnal and solitary, spending its days in burrows it excavates itself. It feeds almost exclusively on ants and termites, using a tongue that can extend longer than its own head to probe deep into mounds, and a single giant pangolin may consume tens of millions of insects each year, providing measurable regulation of termite colonies across its range.

The giant pangolin is found across a broad belt of sub-Saharan Africa, favoring lowland forests, woodlands, and areas close to water where termite mounds are abundant. The IUCN Red List classifies it as Endangered, with populations declining due to hunting for bushmeat, collection for use in traditional medicine, and habitat loss driven by agricultural expansion and logging. It is the most heavily trafficked wild mammal in the world by volume across all pangolin species combined, according to TRAFFIC, and its slow reproductive rate, typically one offspring per year, means populations recover poorly from sustained hunting pressure.