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Science Sunday: Armadillo

October 16, 2011 Ticia 12 Comments

Earlier this week Jeff told me he saw an armadillo as he was leaving for work wandering around our yard.  I was pretty excited, because armadillos are common to our area, but you rarely see them alive.

 

Armadillos have poor eyesight and their instinct when scared is to freeze and then jump up into the air very high to scare the predator.  That does not go well when the predator is a car, and they usually don’t survive………

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So, you can imagine I was pretty excited when I saw one outside the next morning.  I got all the kids outside and we watch him run around and reviewed what we knew of armadillos.

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Armadillos are nocturnal, that means they usually come out at night.  They can’t see very well, but can smell very well.  The bad eyesight was reinforced when we heard him bump into several things in the bushes.

 

 

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Armadillos like to dig A LOT.  We looked at the holes in the ground he had dug last night, which you can see behind him.  I asked the kids why they dig, what are they trying to get, and they answered “bugs,” and they were right.  Armadillos eat primarily grubs and insects in the ground.

 

When I asked how they dig, they said they have claws on their front feet like Mac (our dog) does.  He can dig tunnels like Mac tries to also.

 

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armadillo moving

One thing that surprised me was how noisy he was on the sidewalk.  His claws are so long in front that they clicked rather loudly in the morning air.

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And of course Batman had to pretend to be an armadillo and move just like the armadillo did…….  It was great.

science, Texas land animals, nature study, Science Sunday, zoology

Comments

  1. MaryAnne says

    October 16, 2011 at 11:08 am

    VERY cool! I've always wanted to see an armadillo!

    Reply
  2. Crisc says

    October 16, 2011 at 12:00 pm

    SO Cool!!Ive never seen anything like that close =)

    Reply
  3. Nicole {tired, need sleep} says

    October 16, 2011 at 12:51 pm

    I think it's great that you brought the kids outside to see him! They sound like interesting animals – too funny that he was bumping into things, lol! We never see armadillos in Minnesota, but now I wish we did. (We did see a raccoon in our yard a few nights ago!)

    Thanks for hosting this, Ticia!:)

    Reply
  4. Phyllis says

    October 16, 2011 at 1:22 pm

    This is so cool! I have never seen an armadillo in real life.

    Reply
  5. Liberty says

    October 16, 2011 at 2:27 pm

    That is something I would love to see. I have only seen one at a zoo – the idea of them just co-existing with you is just wonderful!!! Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
  6. Michelle says

    October 16, 2011 at 3:39 pm

    Thanks for the linky! This is a fun hop. I love kid's science projects! We'll have to start doing more!!!
    Michelle
    https://www.heartfeltbalancehandmadelife.blogspot.com

    Reply
  7. Mummy...Mummy.....MUM!! says

    October 16, 2011 at 6:25 pm

    Hi Ticia, Thanks for hosting, really sorry but the hedgehog seems to have gone on twice, but the second did not take the link. My computer crashed, and it all went a bit strange.

    Emma @sciencesparks

    Reply
  8. Kim says

    October 16, 2011 at 8:27 pm

    We saw lots of dead armadillos in Georgia. I never knew they lived that far east… My husband saw a live on in our yard (digging big holes in our new sod!) one night, but I was away and missed it. He tried to videotape it but it was too dark. I'd love to see a live one. Great post!

    Reply
  9. An Almost Unschooling Mom says

    October 17, 2011 at 2:15 am

    That is so completely awesome!

    Reply
  10. Kim says

    October 17, 2011 at 1:28 pm

    I always ran into armadillos when we lived in Austin. Usually I was walking the dog. Not a good thing. Oh, and when an armadillo jumps to scare the predator (your dog) it will startle you. You might scream a little like a tiny girl. But that is just what I have heard. 😉 lol

    Reply
  11. Raising a Happy Child says

    October 17, 2011 at 3:17 pm

    Love it! I've never seen an armadillo outside the zoo 🙂

    Reply
  12. Julie says

    October 18, 2011 at 8:43 pm

    That is so cool!

    Reply

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Ticia Adventures in Mommydom Hi, I'm Ticia! This is the adventures of my family in life and learning. Follow along with us as we share our adventures. We're having a lot of fun and learning as we go.

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