200 Giant Anteaters Now Thrive in Argentina After 19 Years

Nearly 20 years ago, Argentina took a bold gamble on bringing back an animal that had vanished from its wetlands for half a century.

The giant anteater, known locally as yurumí, had disappeared from Corrientes province by the mid-20th century. Poaching, fires, and habitat loss had wiped them out completely from the Iberá Wetlands.

In 2007, La Fundación Rewilding Argentina launched the world's first giant anteater reintroduction program. They started with rescued and rehabilitated animals, including orphans and anteaters that had wandered too close to human settlements.

Over the years, the team released 110 individual anteaters into the wild. These pioneers didn't just survive; they thrived and started families.

Today, around 200 giant anteaters roam freely across the Iberá Wetlands. Multiple generations of wild-born babies now grow up learning to survive in their natural habitat, just as their ancestors did.

The Ripple Effect

The success of the yurumí program has become a blueprint for conservation across the continent. The methodology developed in Corrientes now guides efforts to reintroduce other key predators and herbivores to ecosystems throughout the region.

Argentina's approach shows that patient, careful wildlife restoration can reverse decades of damage. The foundation continues using these proven techniques to bring back other species to Iberá and beyond.

The giant anteater's comeback proves that even animals thought lost forever can find their way home again.