Armadillos : Armored animals. Are they really bulletproof?

Small or medium sized animals are often vulnerable against big predators or human beings. Thus, some animals are evolved and undergone changes in body structure to develop some kind of defense systems such as camouflage, venom or armor. Today we are going to learn about a small animal which is quite known for it's armored and projectile-reflecting body. These are called Armadillos or turtle rabbits (in some regions). Many incidents and cases have been heard and came out point at the fact of Armadillos being bullet-proof, but are they really bullet-proof or if they just got a regular armor?, lets find out.

  Dasypodidae (Armadillos)

General Info

Armadillos are Omnivorous mammals and can be easily identified by their scaled shell like armored body and tail with a small head. They are generally found in Central and South American countries like USA or Argentina. There are 20 known species of Armadillos and can be divided into 4 types. These are:

1) Priodontes

• Giant Armadillos

2) Calyptophractus (Fairy Armadillos)

• Greater fairy Armadillos

• Pink fairy Armadillos

3) Cabassous (Naked-tailed Armadillos)

• Greater naked-tailed Armadillos

• Chacoan naked-tailed Armadillos

• Northern naked-tailed Armadillos

• Southern naked-tailed Armadillos

4) Tolypeutes (Three-banded Armadillos)

• Southern three-banded Armadillos

• Brazilian three-banded Armadillos

5) Euphractus (Six-banded Armadillos)

• Six-banded Armadillos

6) Dasypus (Long-nosed)

• Seven-banded Armadillos

• Nine-banded Armadillos

• Greater long-nosed Armadillos

• Hairy long-nosed Armadillos

• Llanos long-nosed Armadillos

• Southern long-nosed Armadillos

• Yunga's lesser long-nosed Armadillos (Yepes's mulita)

7) Chaetophractus (Hairy Armadillos)

• Big hairy Armadillos

•  Andean hairy Armadillos

• Screaming hairy Armadillos

The exact population of Armadillos is not known however, aside from giant and some three-banded armadillos, all the other armadillo species are quite fine in numbers as they are on the spot on either "Least Concerned (LC)" or "Data Deficient (DD)" of the IUCN red list. The Giant and some other  three-bande, long-nosed and naked-tailed armadillos are considered to be either  "Vulnerable (VU)" or "Near Threatened (NT)". Also, the lifespans of armadillos can be around 12 to 16 years on an average, but can also live from 28 to 30 years if they kept in captivity or just by chance.

Physical Characteristics

Armadillos are small/medium sized armored mammals with small limbs, sharp claws and shell like armor on their body (only on areas above the belly). These armor are made up of membrane bones overlapping each other and further covered by a bony external plate called scute (or scutum). Despite of having short legs, they move quickly both on land and in water. 

Pink fairy Armadillo (left) and Giant Armadillo (Right) 

Armadillo Skeleton

Depending upon the species, they can grow up to 0.42 to 4.92 feet (0.13 to 1.5 meters) in length and can weigh from 0.187 to 119.05 pounds (0.085 to 54 Kg). For instance, you can compare the small armadillo species (like the Pink fairy armadillos) with a hamster and big armadillo species (like the Giant armadillos) with a small pig. As for their body colors, they can be of red, black, pink grey or yellow in color.

Behavior and Lifestyle 

Armadillos are not aggressive by nature and don't attack or posses any threat to the humans. However they can be dangerous if we look from the point of health factor, as armadillos can carry various diseases like Leprosy (Hansen's disease) or Rabies. They live in pairs or in small groups in burrows which they make by digging with their claws. Some Species of armadillos are solitary and prefers to live alone.

As for their diet, different species consume different types of food. But as in overall, we can say Armadillos can from insects, larva, termites to other invertebrates like snails, earthworms and leeches.

Their common predators are cougars, coyotes, bobcats and foxes. The young armadillos are also preyed upon by predator birds like hawks and owls. Most of the species of Armadillos tend to escape quickly to a hiding spot if they get sense of a predator, however, the Tolypeutes (Three-banded Armadillos) species bend their bodies into an armored ball and completely rely on their armor as their defense.

Biological features

Buoyancy and inflation

They can increase their floating ability by increasing their buoyancy which they do by inhaling air and inflating it's stomach and intestines.

Body temperature

Armadillos have low body temperature of around 33 to 36°C (91.4 to 96.8°F) and have a low basal metabolic rate (BMR). This factor/feature is mostly observed in the Giant and Three-banded Armadillos.

Reproduction

Both males and females from most of the armadillo species usually reach the stage of sexual maturity at the age of 3 to 6 months. Some other species can also also take 9 to 12 months to reach it. Mating season for armadillos can be from the month of July to August or from the month of November to January, depending upon the species and the region.

After the mating season ends, the females give birth to 1 to 12 babies (again depending upon the specie) after a gestation period of  2 to 5 months (60 to 152 days). However, the nine-banded armadillos can delay the end of gestation period to 8 months (Embryonic Diapause) if the conditions or availability of food is low. The babies are fed and kept in the burrows and armadillos do not share their burrows with other adults.

FAQ

Are Armadillos Bulletproof ?

The answer is "NO", they are not bulletproof animals. Just because they have an armor  on their body, it will never be able to stop a bullet from penetrating their flesh. However, their armor is of deflective nature, means if a bullet is shot at them at a low or at a certain angle, their shell like armor might be able to deflect it back or to somewhere else. But hey, it will be an extremely rare case.

Facts and Summary

• Armadillos are small/medium sized omnivorous armored mammals which are generally found in Central and South American countries like USA or Argentina.

• Their are 20 known species of armadillos with the Pink fairy tail Armadillo being the smallest and the Giant Armadillo being the largest

• The lifespans of armadillos can be around 12 to 16 years on an average, but can also live from 28 to 30 years if they kept in captivity or just by chance.

• The babies of Armadillos are called "Pups".

• Nine-banded Armadillos can delay the end of the gestation period up to 8 months with a process/phenomenon called Embryonic Diapause, if the food sources are limited or the condition are not appropriate.

• Nine-banded Armadillos are the only mammals to always give birth to identical quadruplets.

• They can increase their floating ability by increasing their buoyancy which they do by inhaling air and inflating it's stomach and intestines.

• Armadillos have low body temperature of around 33 to 36°C (91.4 to 96.8°F) and have a low basal metabolic rate (BMR). This factor/feature is mostly observed in the Giant and Three-banded Armadillos.

• Armadillos have poor eyesight, but great sense of smell.

• They can also swim and can hold their breath underwater for 6 minutes.

• They can move quickly and can  run at a speed of 48.28 Kmph (30 miles per hour).
• Armadillos shells or body armor are traditionally used to make the back of an instrument known as Charango.
• Armadillo meat are also consumed in some parts of the  Central and South American continent.

• They are common road-kills, therefore drive safely for the sake of these animals.

• The word Armadillo came from the Spanish literature or dictionary which translates to "The armored one" in English.

• The Tolypeutes (Three-banded Armadillos) speices bend their bodies into an armored ball and completely rely on their armor as their defense against their predators.

• Armadillos sleep anywhere from 16 to 18 hours everyday.

• They have long and sticky tongues which they use to catch ants and termites.

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