Armadillo

Check out our Armadillo.

Our realistic-looking armadillo is a wonderful educational toy, useful for shoebox dioramas and other school projects, a collector's item, a gift for your favorite amadillo fan, and more. Made of solid, rubbery plastic, it measures 2 1/2 inches from its nose to the end of its tail. It stands about 1 inch tall. The body is moulded with a scaly pattern and has details that give the armadillo character. It is painted gray with black eyes. The details and pose (it appears to be walking or trotting in a rather animated way) make this small plastic armadillo especially cute. The word "ARMADILLO" is moulded in to the bottom. Be sure to see our other armadillo toys and gifts.

Nine-banded armadillos (Dasypus novemcinctus) such as the one you see here have been moving north from South America for the past three million years. Armadillos originated in South America about 50 million years ago, and the nine-banded moved north, crossing the Panamanian land bridge. It is the only armadillo species found in the US, where its range continues to expand. As the armadillo actually has teeth, it is no longer classed as Edentata ("without teeth") but is now usually grouped with the Xenarthra. We have left our armadillo on the Edentates page, because these are still its closest relatives. There are 20 species of armadillo living in Central and South America. Armadillos dig for grubs and create burrows near water with their powerful feet and claws. In addition to grubs, they also eat other insects and invertibrates. These interesting, inoffensive creatures can be seen along roadsides, trails, and streams (where you can see into the brush), usually around dawn and dusk.

This blog is sponsored by Tapir and Friends Animal Store.