Which mammal has a tongue that can extend about 40 centimetres beyond its mouth?

The giant anteater has a tongue that can extend about 40 centimetres beyond its mouth.

Its narrow tongue is covered with sticky saliva and can move rapidly in and out of the mouth while the animal feeds. The giant anteater uses it to collect ants and termites from nests, often taking many insects in a short feeding session. It has no teeth, so prey are swallowed whole.

The animal’s long snout, powerful claws, and specialized tongue form a coordinated feeding system. It may tear open a nest with its claws but usually feeds briefly at one site, helping avoid serious damage to the colony. Its thick fur and bushy tail provide a distinctive silhouette.

Giant anteaters are native to Central and South America. They are terrestrial relatives of sloths and armadillos, not true anteaters in the sense of belonging to a broad group of unrelated insect-eating mammals. Habitat loss, road deaths, and fires threaten some populations.