Chinese Pangolin

• It is one of two pangolins listed as EDGE (Evolutionarily Distinct and Globally Endangered) and among the most illegally trafficked animals in the world.
• It eats nothing but ants and termites, dug out of their nests with its powerful claws.
• Its population has fallen by more than 80% in three generations.
• defensaWhen threatened it rolls into a tight ball armoured by its scales, a defence effective enough to withstand an attack by a big cat.

Skeleton type

Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton covered in keratin scales (mammal)

Habitat & environment

Subtropical and deciduous forest of southern China, the eastern Himalaya and northern South East Asia

Birth weight

92.5 grams to 1 lb (~450 g) depending on the source; 23-45 cm long at birth

Size at birth

Already covered in soft, pliable scales at birth, which harden within the first few days

Sexual maturity

Before its first birthday (some sources give ~755 days, a little over 2 years)

Gestation / incubation

Highly variable by source: 70-235 days of active gestation, though the whole span from mating to birth can stretch to 10-12 months through possible delayed implantation

Litter / clutch size

1 young per birth

Lifespan in captivity

Documented record of up to 15.3 years in captivity

Sources consulted: ZooKeys (captive breeding study); ScienceDirect; PMC (reproductive behavior monitoring study); AnAge (genomics.senescence.info); Pangolin Specialist Group; World Land Trust; Animalia.bio; Animal Diversity Web