Baby Armadillo Photograph

05.18.2007 - How cute! A baby armadillo! Armadillos aren't normally cute, but the younglings qualify, and then they get less attractive with age (like me!). Armadillos don't breed very often (like me!), and when they do, the young hide in the den and grow quickly. Thus, juvenile armadillos are rarely seen or caught. However, today we got four juvenile armadillos. Here I am, seen holding the pick of the litter.

How did we come across four in just one day? That's a silly question - armadillos ALWAYS have four young! That's right, in a very strange breeding quirk, armadillos always give birth to four identical quadruplets - the embryo always splits into four. Additionally, in rare mating behavior, dillos copulate face to face. I don't know how often this happens (or happens successfully) because, as stated, baby armadillos are rare. Adults live 15 years, and thus they don't need to breed rapidly, unlike rats, which have an average life expectancy of under a year. Armadillos grow very quickly, and then stop. They reach adult size within perhaps 6 months, and then they don't grow any more for the rest of their long lives.

Another interesting thing about the young armadillo is that the bony shell is quite a bit more flexible than the adult shell. It hardens with age. Speaking of age, I'm going to turn 30 years old in just 13 days! Who knew the day would ever come? Ah, to be a youngling again, wide-eyed and naive, with my snout just discovering the joys of a freshly dug earthworm from the dirt, my claws getting muddy for the first time. I don't have much else to say about aging or baby armadillos in general.

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The armadillo is a neat little creature. It is usually nomadic, but it will set up shop in a yard if food is abundant. The armadillo feeds on insects and earthworms, and will make quick work of a property by creating unsightly tunnels. Impressive diggers, armadillos use their strong legs and sharp claws to create the burrows where they find both food and shelter. These living areas are often along the banks of streams where the soil is soft and easily manipulated. Armadillos can swim, and inflate their stomachs with air, dialating the organ to twice its original size to allow the creature the ability to stay above water. Without doing this, the heavy outer armor of the ‘dillo would sink it to the bottom of the stream. Amazingly enough, the armadillo can hold its breath underwater for up to six minutes. This animal has been used in research for leprosy, a disease which both people and armadillos are susceptible to.

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Whether you have them close to your home or you just like how cute they are, a baby armadillo is unique and beautiful. They are usually medium in size and feature an armor that protects them from becoming a victim of their prey. If you look at a baby armadillo photograph, you will notice the nine bands going around them which makes them even more unique than any other animal.

Interesting Facts about Baby Armadillos

The habitat of armadillos includes areas where the temperature can stay rather warm due to the fact that they lack fat storage in their body. However, they are picky about where they live and like the soil in a specific area. They prefer sandy areas or areas that feature porous or loose soil. Armadillos live in South America as well as Central America with the exception of the nine-banded armadillo which lives in the Southern part of the United States.

Armadillo Habits

They are not social animals and like to spend the majority of their time sleeping. They can normally sleep up to sixteen hours per day and they make their home in burrows where they can be left alone. They like to sleep mainly at night and forage throughout the day for food. They like to keep to themselves so the only time they will tolerate another armadillo is when it is cold outside, or they are looking for a mate. It's not unusual, however, to see a group of armadillos in a burrow together in order to keep each other warm when it's cold outside.

Their diet consists of meat and plants mostly, focusing on insects and larvae. Because they feature a long tongue that is sticky, they can grab up beetles, termites, ants, and other insects that like to burrow under the ground as well. In addition to insects and larvae, they indulge in plants, small vertebrates, fruit, and eggs when possible. The gestation period for an armadillo is two to five months. The female can have up to twelve baby armadillos. When it's time to give birth, the female will make the burrow extend up to fifteen feet wide. The babies are called pups. The pups mature quickly and are normally weaned between two and four months of age. Between nine and twelve months, the pups are ready to have babies of their own.

Different Classes of Armadillo

Dasypus novemcintus is another name for the nine-banded armadillo

Dasypus septemcinctus is the scientific name for the seven-banded armadillo

Calyptophractus retusus is another name for the greater fairy armadillo

Chaetophractus yellerosus is known as the screaming hairy armadillo

Chlamyphorus truncatus is also called the pink fairy armadillo

Euphractus sexcinctus is the six banded armadillo

Cabassous centralis is also called the northern naked-tail armadillo

Priodontes maximus is the scientific name for the giant armadillo

Tolypeutes tricinctus is known as a Brazilian three-banded armadillo

To get the cutest baby armadillo photograph, you need to simply find a way that you can observe them without them seeing you. Capturing them in their natural habitat will ensure that you can get the photograph that you want.