Creature ransacked tent area (8)
I believe the answer is:
anteater
'creature' is the definition.
(anteater is an animal)
'ransacked tent area' is the wordplay.
'ransacked' is an anagram indicator.
'tent'+'area'='tentarea'
'tentarea' anagrammed gives 'ANTEATER'.
(Other definitions for anteater that I've seen before include "Scaly insectivore" , "animal (this one?)" , "Animal with a long snout and sticky tongue" , "Feeder on termites" , "Termite muncher" .)