Cape Town - The Cape of Good Hope SPCA is investigating yet another wildlife mystery after a deceased female aardvark washed ashore at Sunset Beach in Milnerton on Friday.
An autopsy concluded that the animal was dead before it entered the water.
Wildlife and nature photographers Alex and Juanita Aitkenhead stumbled across the nocturnal mammal in wonderment, along with other curious beachgoers, and requested the SA Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds (Sanccob) remove the animal and hand it over to wildlife services for evaluation and a post-mortem.
Aardvarks are nocturnal mammals also known as ant bears or earth pigs, are sometimes referred to as the “Cape anteater”. They typically feed on ants and termites and their main predators are lions, leopards, pythons, hyenas and humans.
Alex said they suspected the creature was being trafficked but then died and was subsequently tossed overboard approximately one or two hours before they found her on Friday.
However, the SPCA was still investigating the matter and would be looking at camera footage and taking into account reports received from several eye-witnesses to help solve this latest wildlife mystery.
Cape of Good Hope SPCA spokesperson Jaco Pieterse explained that aardvarks are a seldom-seen animal in the Western Cape, and although there was a small population living on the outskirts of Cape Town, it was still a rare occurrence to see one as they were mostly shy nocturnal animals.
When the SPCA was informed of the animal, an autopsy was arranged to determine its cause of death and an independent wildlife veterinarian came to the conclusion that the aardvark was already dead when it went into the water and was either dumped overboard a ship close to shore or was somehow put into the sea from land.
Pieterse said: “The aardvark was in otherwise good condition, with no signs of external trauma that might have indicated how she came to be floating in the sea.
“Examining her heart, the veterinarian noticed conditions that indicated she had suffered from heart failure, and some fluid on the lungs indicated shock lungs; which is a state most often caused by suffocation (such as being kept in a box with no ventilation might induce).”
Pieterse implored anyone with information on this case to contact the Cape of Good Hope SPCA on 0217004140 or email [email protected]
