Armadillo fact file

Because their heavy shell makes it hard for them to float, they gulp air into their intestines to make them more buoyant. The ability to cross streams and rivers has helped armadillos expand their home range. For more on this increase in armadillo range, see the Armadillo Expansion page.

Armadillo teeth have no enamel the hard outer covering of the tooth. They also have very few teeth — just several peg-like molars. For more on this, take a look at a picture of armadillo teeth. Like most insect eating mammals, armadillos have a very long, sticky tongue to slurp up bugs as quickly as possible.

They also are equipped with strong claws to tear open ant nests. Their cousins, the anteaters, have very similar tongues and claws. For more on anteaters, see the Armadillo Relatives page. Just a few cold days in a row can be deadly to an armadillo. Despite this fact, armadillos are steadily moving north. For more on the northward migration of the nine-banded armadillo, see the Armadillo Expansion page. Hot blood going out through arteries is cooled by cold blood coming in through veins, and vice versa.

This means that not much heat actually goes out into the legs, keeping it in the body. This also means they will get frostbitten very easily, since they have no way to warm their extremities through blood flow.

Marine mammals, like whales, use a similar net of veins and arteries to stop the loss of body heat through the fins. Baby armadillos have soft shells, like human fingernails. They get harder as the animal grows, depositing bone under the skin to make a solid shell.

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To download this worksheet, click the button below to signup for free it only takes a minute and you'll be brought right back to this page to start the download! Armadillos are barrel-shaped animals covered with natural armor.

It refers to the bony plates that cover the back, head, legs, and tail of most of these odd looking creatures. See the fact file below for more information on the armadillos or alternatively, you can download our page Armadillo worksheet pack to utilise within the classroom or home environment. This is a fantastic bundle which includes everything you need to know about armadillo across 21 in-depth pages. After a gestation period of two to five months, the female will give birth to one to 12 young in a birthing burrow.

These burrows can be up to 15 feet 4. Baby armadillos are called pups. According to the San Diego Zoo, twin births are common.

Nine-banded armadillos have four identical pups of the same gender in every litter, and the seven-banded armadillo has eight to 15 identical pups at one time. Pups mature quickly. They are weaned by two to four months. By nine to 12 months, the pups are mature and ready to have offspring of their own. Armadillos can live anywhere from four to 30 years. The median life expectancy for three-banded armadillos is around 16 years. Here is the taxonomy of armadillos , according to ITIS:.

Some species are vulnerable, though. For example, the Andean hairy armadillo is considered vulnerable because its population has declined by more than 30 percent in the past 10 years. The giant armadillo is considered vulnerable because its population has decreased by at least 30 percent in the past 21 years. The screaming hairy armadillo gets it name from the sound it makes when threatened.

Don't get the idea that they are cowards, however.