Meet the Armadillo

Armadillos are placental mammals from the New World. Most species live in South and Central America. There are 20 different species, and each one gets its name from a physical feature it has. Eight well-known species are the nine-banded armadillo, giant armadillo, large hairy armadillo, three-banded armadillo, pink fairy armadillo, six-banded armadillo, northern naked-tailed armadillo, and pichi (or dwarf armadillo).

The word "armadillo" comes from Spanish. It means "little armored one", a perfect name, because the shell looks like armor made of many small bones.

The smallest species is the pink fairy armadillo at just 6 inches long. The largest is the giant armadillo, which can reach 1.5 meters. In captivity, armadillos can live 12-15 years. In the wild, they usually survive around 5-7 years.

Scientists believe armadillos evolved from much bigger bony-shelled creatures called glyptodon and panochthus. Today's armadillos are far smaller, but they kept the hard shell from their ancient relatives.

Classification of Armadillo

  • Kingdom, Animalia
  • Phylum, Chordata
  • Class, Mammalia
  • Order, Cingulata
  • Superorder, Xenarthra
  • Family, Dasypodidae

Anatomy

Legs

Armadillos have short legs, but they can move fast when there is danger. Their hard outer shell protects them as they push through thick forest. They can also climb over low fences and tree roots with ease.

Lungs

Armadillos can hold their breath for almost six minutes. They can swim across ponds and rivers. You might think their heavy shell would drag them under, but it doesn't. They have a clever trick: they swallow air into their lungs and stomach. This makes their body swell and double in size. The extra air helps them float and swim safely across.

Nine-banded armadillo swimming across a pond, head above water
Armadillos are surprisingly capable swimmers, they inflate their bodies with air to stay afloat.

Body Shape

When burrowing, armadillos can hold their breath for 6 straight minutes by storing air in their windpipe and air passages. The pink fairy armadillo has a torpedo-shaped body with a hard shielded head. It uses its wide front claws to push sand aside, almost like swimming through the ground.

Pink fairy armadillo, the world's smallest armadillo species, with its distinctive pink shell
The pink fairy armadillo (Chlamyphorus truncatus) is the world's smallest armadillo at just 6 inches long.

Nose and Tongue

Armadillos have poor eyesight, but an amazing sense of smell. They can detect food and predators from far away. Their long, sticky tongue and thick saliva are perfect for catching insects. In fact, they can smell prey that is hiding up to 20 cm below the ground.

Teeth

Armadillos have a few small, peg-shaped back teeth. These teeth have no hard enamel coating. Because of this, they only eat soft food that doesn't need a lot of chewing.

Screaming Armadillo

The screaming armadillo is the hairiest of all species. It has around 18 bands on its body, but only 6 to 8 of them can move.

Test Your Armadillo Knowledge!

5 quick questions. How much do you really know about these armored mammals?

Habitat and Behavior

Armadillos Prefer Hot Climate

Armadillos are found only on the American continent. They prefer warm, humid climates. Their metabolism (the rate at which they burn energy) is slow, which means they cannot survive in cold regions. Out of the 20 species, the nine-banded armadillo is the only one found in the United States.

Armadillos sleep for 18-19 hours a day. They come out to search for food mainly at night.

Prefer Solitude

Armadillos like to live alone. They do not share their burrows with other armadillos. They mark their territory by spraying urine and leaving droppings. They also release scent from special glands in their eyelids, nose, and feet.

Burrow Preference

Armadillos like to live near streams, rivers, creeks, ponds, and tropical forests. Soft, moist soil is easiest to dig, so they stay close to water. Many species also like to live near ant colonies, easy food nearby! Some species prefer sandy areas. Armadillos dig using their front claws and usually build 10-15 burrows, each with at least 4-5 entrances.

Armadillo foraging on turf grass
Armadillos use their powerful sense of smell (detecting food up to 20 cm below ground) to forage at night.

Food

Food Preference

Armadillos search for food mostly at night. They are omnivores, they eat both plants and animals. Their menu includes ants, grubs, spiders, snails, earthworms, termites, mole crickets, frogs, beetles, larvae, small reptiles, and small amphibians. They will also eat the eggs of ground-nesting birds.

Opportunistic Scavenging

Armadillos also scavenge, they eat dead animals they find. They eat plants and fruits too. Some species, like the giant armadillo, can damage farms and gardens while searching for food.

Grave Diggers

Armadillos love digging in soft soil to find insects and worms. A freshly dug grave has soft, loose earth, perfect for finding worms. Because of this, some people call armadillos "grave diggers," though it's really just the worms they are after.

Reproduction and Gestation

The mating season for armadillos usually lasts 2 to 3 months. How long the pregnancy lasts depends on the species, it can be anywhere from 60 to 120 days.

The Nine Banded Armadillo

Armadillos are ready to reproduce when they are 9 to 12 months old. During breeding season, a male and female nine-banded armadillo share a burrow. The female usually mates with just one partner. The male, though, may mate with several females.

Armadillo Can Delay its Gestation

Armadillos have a remarkable ability: they can pause their own pregnancy. If a female is stressed, she can delay giving birth by up to almost two and a half years. Even after an egg is fertilized, it may take several more months before it attaches to the wall of the uterus.

Unique Birthing

In nine-banded armadillos, all young in a litter come from a single fertilized egg. That means every litter is always four identical pups, four quadruplets that are always the same sex. Other species may give birth to 1-8 pups. All species feed their young with milk.

Over her lifetime, a female nine-banded armadillo can give birth to 56 pups, every single one born as part of an identical set of quadruplets.

Newborn pups have soft, leather-like skin that hardens into armor over time. One more fun fact: armadillo pups are born with their eyes already open.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does the name armadillo mean?

Armadillo is a Spanish word meaning 'little armored one', because its shell looks like armor made of small bones.

How many species of armadillo are there?

There are 20 different species of armadillos, each named according to its physical characteristics.

Can armadillos swim?

Yes. Armadillos can hold their breath underwater for almost six minutes. They can also float by filling their lungs and stomach with air, which doubles their size and increases buoyancy.

Why do nine-banded armadillos always have quadruplets?

In nine-banded armadillos, all young ones are produced from a single fertilized egg, which results in the birth of four identical pups in one litter.

Survival

Armadillos have a very low body temperature, between 33° C and 36° C. Because of this, they need to burrow in warm places to stay comfortable. They also cannot live where the ground is too hard, since they rely on digging for both shelter and food.

Defense Mechanism

The three-banded armadillo has a special talent: it can curl into a perfect ball when it senses danger. Other species cannot do this because their shell is less flexible. Instead, those species have to run or burrow to stay safe.

Three-banded armadillo rolled into a perfect defensive ball, shell tightly closed
The three-banded armadillo is the only species that can roll into a perfect, complete ball, other species must flee or burrow instead.

Armadillos dig many bolt-holes and burrows linked by tunnels. If a predator gets too close, the armadillo ducks into the nearest tunnel to hide.

Response When Threatened

All armadillo species are fast runners and usually bolt to the nearest burrow when scared. The nine-banded armadillo can even jump four feet straight up in the air if it is startled. The pink fairy armadillo is incredibly fast at digging itself underground when it senses danger. The screaming hairy armadillo got its name from its habit of crying out loudly when touched or threatened.

The pichi armadillo has jagged, sharp-edged scales along its body. This makes it very hard for a predator to pull it out of its burrow.

Medical Research

  • Research on leprosy in armadillos has helped scientists to find a vaccination against the disease.
  • The nine-banded armadillo is the natural reservoir for the study of reproduction and multiple birth-related issues.
  • They are also used in research on Chagas disease.
  • The nine-banded armadillo has also been used in experiments to study cancer-causing agents, drug metabolism, skin and organ transplant, etc.

Humans and Armadillos

During the Great Depression, many Americans ate armadillos out of desperation. People mockingly called them "Hoover hogs," blaming President Herbert Hoover for failing to keep his promise of a "chicken in every pot."

In 1995, the State of Texas made the nine-banded armadillo its official state small mammal.

In Central and South America, people still eat armadillo meat as part of their diet. However, armadillos can carry Mycobacterium leprae, the bacterium that causes leprosy. Eating undercooked armadillo meat can pass the infection to humans.

Armadillos can be pests. When digging for food, they can damage farms, lawns, and gardens. Some farmers kill them to protect their crops.

Many things threaten armadillo populations: habitat loss from human development, hunting, mining, road accidents, and being killed for their shells (used to make musical instruments and accessories). Only the nine-banded armadillo is doing well and growing in numbers. Most other species are threatened or near extinction. Armadillos play an important role in nature and medical research, and they need our protection.

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