One of Mississippi's oddest looking pests can tear up a lawn in a night, but experts say not much can be done to prevent the armadillo from doing it again. Armadillos are similar in size to a cat or possum and their weight range from eight to 17 pounds, Stewart said. They have a protective shell with movable rings and small head with a long-narrow snout.
Armadillos have no teeth.
Despite their odd appearance, they can run and swim well. Armadillos are known to be voracious diggers. They can dig up to 15 feet burrows where they give birth and raise their young, but they also dig in people's yards, golf courses, vegetable gardens and flower beds in search of insects. The armadillos' diet range from ants to spiders. They also eat larvae, frogs and other invertebrates.