The aardvark is one of the most sought-after and hardest-to-find animals on the entire safari circuit — a genuinely one-of-a-kind mammal with no close living relatives. Strictly nocturnal, easily spooked by bright light, and living at low density across the savanna, spotting one is considered a real trophy sighting by experienced safari-goers. It’s also a hidden pillar of the ecosystem, digging burrows that dozens of other species depend on. Explore our Tanzania safaris for a dedicated aardvark night drive.
Key Highlights
- The only living species in its entire mammalian order, with no close living relatives
- Feeds almost exclusively on termites and ants, using an extremely long, sticky tongue
- Extremely sensitive to bright light, making it one of the hardest animals to observe well
- Digs extensive burrows that many other species later use for shelter
- Strictly nocturnal, so only found on dedicated night drives
- Best odds: red-filtered spotlight drives in Ndutu, the Mara conservancies, and Laikipia
A Truly One-of-a-Kind Mammal
The aardvark (Orycteropus afer) is the last surviving member of its entire mammalian order, with no other living species closely related to it — its closest relatives, distantly, are elephants and hyraxes, but that connection traces back tens of millions of years. It’s an evolutionary oddity: a pig-snouted, rabbit-eared, kangaroo-tailed digging specialist that looks like nothing else in the animal kingdom, built entirely around one purpose — finding and eating termites and ants.
Why It’s So Hard to See
Aardvarks are almost impossible to encounter on a standard game drive, since they’re strictly nocturnal, emerging from their burrows well after dark and returning before sunrise. They’re also unusually sensitive to bright light, often retreating underground within moments of being caught in a standard spotlight beam. Combined with naturally low population densities across the savanna, this makes the aardvark one of the genuine “trophy” sightings of an East African night drive — many experienced guides and repeat safari visitors rank it among the hardest animals to see well on the entire circuit.
Specialist guides have developed workarounds, most notably using red-filtered spotlights, which aardvarks appear to notice far less than standard white light, giving a longer viewing window before the animal retreats. Timing matters too — the pre-dawn hours, when a foraging aardvark is heading back to its burrow after a long night, tend to offer calmer, more prolonged sightings than the more skittish early evening.
A Termite Specialist Built for the Job
Everything about the aardvark’s body is shaped by its diet. It uses an extraordinarily long, sticky tongue to sweep up termites and ants by the thousand each night, powerful claws to dig into termite mounds and underground galleries, and an exceptionally keen sense of smell to locate termite colonies from the surface. A single aardvark can consume tens of thousands of termites and ants in one night’s foraging, covering several kilometres in the process.
An Underground Architect for the Whole Savanna
Beyond its own foraging, the aardvark plays an outsized ecological role through its burrows. Each one is a substantial piece of engineering, reaching several metres underground and providing a stable, temperature-buffered refuge from the savanna’s extreme heat and cold. Once an aardvark moves on, its abandoned burrows are frequently taken over by a wide range of other species, including warthogs, African wild cats, civets, genets, porcupines, and even spotted hyenas raising young pups — making the aardvark one of the savanna’s quiet but essential ecosystem engineers, providing shelter that dozens of other species ultimately rely on.
Where to Look for an Aardvark
The Ndutu Conservation Area in the southern Serengeti offers some of the best chances in Tanzania, particularly on specialist night drives using red-filtered spotlights and pre-dawn timing. In Kenya, the Olare Motorogi Conservancy bordering the Masai Mara and Ol Pejeta Conservancy on the Laikipia Plateau both run active aardvark monitoring and offer strong odds on a dedicated night drive, with guides often able to target known active burrow locations.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is the aardvark so hard to see on safari?
It’s strictly nocturnal, occurs at low population density, and is unusually sensitive to bright light, often retreating underground the moment a standard spotlight finds it.
What does an aardvark eat?
Almost exclusively termites and ants, which it locates by smell and consumes using an extremely long, sticky tongue.
Where is the best place to see an aardvark?
The Ndutu Conservation Area, Olare Motorogi Conservancy, and Ol Pejeta Conservancy all offer good chances on a specialist night drive using red-filtered spotlights.
Why are aardvark burrows important to other animals?
Abandoned aardvark burrows provide stable, temperature-buffered shelter for many other species, including warthogs, wild cats, civets, and even denning hyenas.
Plan Your Safari
Our safari specialists can arrange a specialist aardvark night drive in Ndutu, the Mara conservancies, or Laikipia.
Contact us today for a free, no-obligation quote on your safari.
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