Nine-Banded Armadillo

## Description

The Nine-banded armadillo is a medium-sized mammal covered over its whole body, and its head and tail, with an armored shell, which has horny scales and is considered by some to be unattractive. The scales are known as “scutes”. The shoulder plates and those on its rump are large. There are nine or fewer narrow, jointed armor bands that allow it to bend, located on its midsection. Its head is small and pointed, with a long snout, large pointed ears and peg-like teeth. There are large, thick, sharp claws on its front feet that help it burrow and dig. It has soft underparts, and although covered in armor, it has a little fur. Due to the sparseness of its fur, the animal is extremely sensitive to temperature. Armadillos are very good swimmers and runners, and they can easily walk underwater to cross small steams.

## Distribution

Nine-banded armadillos are found in North, Central, and South America. They live in pine forests, rainforests, scrublands, open prairies, or dense shady woodlands in a rainy and warm environment. They can not thrive in particularly cold or dry environments.

## Behavior

Nine-banded armadillos are solitary and primarily nocturnal creatures that come out to forage around dusk. They do not hibernate, though in the northern areas of their habitation they are more active during summer. An armadillo will mark its territory with secretions from its face, feet, and rear. Their eyesight is poor but their sense of smell is extremely good. They are extensive burrowers, with a single animal sometimes maintaining up to 12 burrows on its range. These burrows are roughly 8 in (20 cm) wide, 7 ft (2.1 m) deep, and 25 ft (7.6 m) long. When they are not foraging, armadillos shuffle along fairly slowly, stopping occasionally to sniff the air for signs of danger. If sufficiently frightened, they can jump 3-4 ft (91-122 cm) straight in the air.

## Diet

Nine-banded armadillos are Carnivores (insectivores) and forage by digging with their snouts in loose soil. Their long, sticky tongue helps them grab ants, grubs, worms and termites, wrapping them up in their tongue. They will also eat tubers, small reptiles, and amphibians.

## Reproduction

Some studies have shown that within a given breeding season, Nine-banded armadillos are polygynous with respect to pairing. The animals become reproductively mature at about one year of age. They produce young almost every year all throughout their lives. The female can give birth to as many as 56 pups over the period of her life. Breeding occurs during July and August, and the gestation period is 4 months. Usually, 4 identical babies are born, of the same gender, having developed from the same egg, sharing the same placenta. After birth, the young remain in the burrow, living off the mother's milk for about 3 months. They have soft leathery skin which develops into armor as they grow. They then begin to forage with the mother, eventually leaving after 6 months to a year.

## Population

### Threats

Nine-banded armadillos have many predators, including pumas, coyotes, maned wolves, black bears, red wolves, alligators, jaguars, and bobcats. Raptors prey on the young. Humans in many rural areas hunt armadillos for their skin and meat, and car accidents kill thousands of them each year. As they have a high reproduction rate and their numbers are currently increasing, nine-banded armadillos are not seen to be a threatened species.

### Number

The IUCN Red List and other sources don’t provide the number of the Nine-banded armadillo total population size. Currently, this species is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List and its numbers today are Stable.

### Ecological niche

Nine-banded armadillos are important as predators of a range of common insects which are agricultural pests. Aside from being hunted for their meat, their skin is used to create various trinkets. These animals can damage the roots of plants. They provide shelter to shucks, rattlesnakes, burrowing owls, and cotton rats.

## References

https://animalia.bio/nine-banded-armadillo