Pink Fairy Armadillo
I think I've found my new favorite armored mammal (yes, I break my favorites down into very narrow categories). This is the pink fairy armadillo (Chlamyphorus truncatus). Though the creature's name hints at the possibility that one of my five-year-old twin daughters might have named it, "it is found in central Argentina where it inhabits dry grasslands and sandy plains with thorn bushes and cacti." My daughters, to my knowledge, have never traveled there, and they, as a rule, steer clear of cacti.This armadillo can bury itself in a matter of seconds if properly motivated (think prowling coyotes or teenage boys), and feeds mostly on ants and ant larvae. I can't think of anything wrong with this creature. It's armored, has massive claws, eats the pesky ant, and probably speaks with a suave Argentine accent. Can you ask for anything more?Thanks for the photo, Ida.Photo source: Sharenator
Wow, that armadillo looks awesome. I can't really see what makes it "pink" or a "fairy," though.
ReplyDeleteThere's not many entries that you make that make me want to say, "Dude, you totally made that up!" but this is one of them.
ReplyDeleteAre those things in the front its CLAWS? I think we need a manicure....
Dude, that looks just like something I thought I'd imagined up as an alien species for a story. I must've seen a picture of one of these and forgot about it. Super cool.
ReplyDeleteWhat the photo doesn't show you is that it has a perfectly vertical, flat, hairless, "chopped off" looking surface for a rump. Presumably this is so predators have nothing to get their claws or teeth around when chasing it down a tunnel.
ReplyDeleteI'm with erin, I really have a hard time picturing somthing less "fairy"-like.
ReplyDeleteIt's like a hairy, clawed woodlouse! With a suave Argentinian accent!
ReplyDeleteI would like to know what drugs those who named this beast were taking