Scientific name: Dasypodidae
Lifespan: Nine-banded armadillo: 12 – 15 years
Height: Nine-banded armadillo: 5.9 – 9.8 in.
Higher classification: Cingulata
Rank: Family
Mass: Giant armadillo: 62 – 71 lbs, Nine-banded armadillo: 5.5 – 14 lbs
Grubs basic diet. Most armadillo species forage in the early morning and evening hours for a variety of invertebrates and insects, including beetles, grubs, and worms. Because, like many burrowing animals, armadillos tend to have extremely poor eyesight, their hunting skills rely on their abilities to smell their food.
Two species, the northern naked-tailed armadillo and nine-banded armadillo, are found in Central America; the latter has also reached the United States, primarily in the south-central states (notably Texas), but with a range that extends as far east as South Carolina and Florida.
In fact, only the three-banded armadillo can, curling its head and back feet and contorting its shell into a hard ball that confounds would-be predators. Armadillos live in temperate and warm habitats, including rain forests, grasslands, and semi-deserts
