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Baby Armadillo
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Armadillos are prolific diggers with sharp claws. Many species use their sharp claws to dig for food, such as grubs, and to dig dens. The Nine-banded Armadillo prefers to build burrows in moist soil near the creeks, streams, and arroyos around which it lives and feeds. The diet of different armadillo species varies, but consists mainly of insects, grubs, and other invertebrates. Some species, however, feed almost entirely on ants and termites.
In common with other xenarthrans, armadillos in general have low body temperatures (33–36 °C) and basal metabolic rates (from 40–60% of that expected in a placental mammal of their mass). This is particularly true of types that specialize on using termites as their primary food source (for example, Priodontes and Tolypeutes).
Armadillos have poor vision, but large eyes.
The armor is formed by plates of dermal bone covered in relatively small, overlapping epidermal scales called "scutes", composed of bone with a covering of horn. In most species, there are rigid shields over the shoulders and hips, with a number of bands separated by flexible skin covering the back and flanks. Additional armor covers the top of the head, the upper parts of the limbs, and the tail. The underside of the animal is never armored, and is simply covered with soft skin and fur.
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