That's why always an armadillo litter contains offspring of the same sex.
All armadillos base on their smell when foraging.Ħ.Nine banded armadillo mates during the autumn, but the egg fecundation is delayed so that birth takes place in the spring.Īrmadillos are unique amongst mammals through their breeding pattern: from the sole egg form four identical twins. The nine banded armadillo can eat 40,000 ants once, while giant armadillo can ingest 700 g (1.5 pounds) of ants (meaning 200,000 ants) in just one night.ĭuring the summer, nine banded armadillo is active after evening, while in the winter, just during the warmest part of the day. Many species dig under the corpses of big animals to get to the larvae feeding on the carrion some species are specialized for ants and termites. Armadillos can kill snakes by launching themselves upon these reptiles and cutting them with the edge of their hard shell. The individual or the group has a territory varying with the habitat and food availability.ĥ.Armadillos have a varied diet, from insects and their larvae to small reptiles and mammals, and also plants, especially during the winter. They usually rest in dens, which can have a depth of several meters, sometimes with large underground rooms that can be up to 2 m (6.6 ft) wide. These mammals live solitary, in pair or small groups. Some species are diurnal and other are nocturnal. The upper head and tail are protected by shields, too, while the ventral parts are covered by soft, scaly skin, sometimes hairy.Ĥ.Armadillos live from semideserts to mountain pastures and forest edges and river banks. Hairy armadillos have up to 18 bands, while the three banded armadillo, as its name suggests, just 3. In fact, their huge shells were used for making roofs or tombs.ģ.The main trait of the armadillos is their bony shell, made of hard bony plates forming protective rigid shields over their hips and shoulders, joined by a number of flexible bands in the middle part of the body. Living species vary in body length from 12.5 cm (5 in) to 1 m (3.3 ft), but extinct species could be 3 m (10 ft) long and 2 tonnes heavy! The giant armadillos disappeared at the end of the Ice Age, meaning that the first humans in America met them. They evolved in South America and only one species entered North America, the nine-banded armadillo. 1.The name of "armadillo" comes from the Spanish "armado" (armored), the name being given after the Spanish conquistadors.Ģ.Today there are 20 species of armadillos.
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