Writer Marguerite Young once observed that “all creatures are flawed, but out of the flaw may come the universe.” She might have been talking about the lowly, shell-surrounded, half-blind armadillo, which despite being a nuisance if it burrows in your back yard, is still one of the most fascinating creatures on the planet.
In the hotter Latin American countries there are 20 varieties of this little creature, but in the United States, only one can be seen and that is the Nine-Banded Armadillo. Hikers at an environmental preserve near Englewood, Florida came face to snout with it this week.
Kipling was right
“It is just as Kipling said,” chuckled one of the trail walkers, referring to the classic tale “The Beginning of the Armadillos” in which Kipling saw the creature as a blend of a “stickly-prickly hedgehog” and a “slow-solid tortoise.”
Named after a Spanish word meaning “little armored one,” the Nine-Banded Armadillo is the only mammal in the world to have such a suit of bony plates over its back, head, legs and tail. With the exception of this flashy armor, it is a homely thing, with small eyes and a shovel-shaped snout.
Looking, not touching
Typically of its Florida cousins, this armadillo was two feet long and an estimated 12 pounds in weight, though nobody in the party was brave enough to heft it for a more accurate measure.
The armadillo roots around for termites, ants, beets and other insects, plants and even fruit in the earlier parts of the day and evening, and then spends the bulk of the remainder of its time on this planet sleeping, often up to 16 hours a day. It likes the warmth of states like Florida, where it can be a real pest if it decides to leave nature preserves and take up residence under somebody’s porch or in their expensive landscaping. There is a whole industry built around removing them from such situations.
Four babies, no waiting
It has been speculated that its poor eyesight isn’t a big problem when it comes time to raise their family, since the armadillo gives birth to identical quadruplets each time, and they all look pretty much identical.
Watching an armadillo as it makes its slow and ponderous way of sniffing with its keen nose and shuffling its way through the Florida brush, it is hard to imagine that it can actually run very fast when so inclined. As well, when it is startled, it will jump straight up in the air.
Inspiration to writers
A close relative of the anteater and sloth, the armadillo nonetheless seems to be more of an inspiration to writers and poets than the rest of the family. A few years ago it figured prominently in a beautifully illustrated book, The Armadillo from Amarillo by Lynne Cherry.
The Nine-Banded Armadillo is the only one of its species to be increasing in population. All the others are experiencing a gradual decline, especially in countries where they are trapped for their meat. It doesn’t taste like chicken; however, it does taste like pork.
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