Aardvark population decreasing in their native Africa

ZSL London Zoo has confirmed the death of one of its aardvarks. Here is what we know about the creatures:

• They live in Sub-Saharan Africa, in dry savanna, grasslands and forests.
• They eat ants and termites which they suck up with their tubular snouts.
• Aardvarks have a lifespan of 23 years, according to ZSL London Zoo's website.
• The mammals belong to the Orycteropodidae family and are nocturnal, spending the daytime in cool underground burrows which they dig using their powerful spade-like claws.
• Aardvarks have long, worm-like sticky tongues, their front legs are shorter than their hind legs and they fold their long pink ears for digging.
• Big cats are their natural predators, and when pursued by one, aardvarks can dig at speed - sealing off the tunnel behind them as they go. They can also run in zigzags in a bid to confuse their enemies.
• The aardvark population is decreasing in some areas, and the biggest threats they face are from loss of habitat, and being hunted for meat and use as tribal charms.