English            -             Six-banded Armadillo

Portuguese    -              Tatu-Peba

Latin               -              Euphractus Sexcinctus

It’s always cool, seeing something that you never expected to see. In a way it’s a bit of a funny thing to say because with wildlife photography, you never know what you will find. But I always think it’s a bit of a bonus if I photograph something other than birds. (not that I’m complaining, adding a new bird species to my list is always good) Unfortunately, my first sightings of the Six-banded Armadillo were only “road kill” Six-banded Armadillos. These wee animals aren’t that fast and with poor eyesight and a bad habit of crossing roads,……….it’s a recipe for disaster. In fact, one just did that. (photo No 1) We were driving along highway BR262, travelling northwest from the town of Miranda to our Pousada in the Pantanal and a Six-banded Armadillo ran from the other side of the road, in front of us, to our side of the road. Luckily there was no other vehicles around at the time and I had time to stop and let it past. Also had time to pull over and snap some photos. Then I had to try and stop it from crossing back over the road as by this time there was a bit more traffic around. Photos 2 & 3 were taken on a walking track as we were coming back from Buraco das Araras. First of all, we heard rustling in the tall grass, (I thought it was a lizard at first) then one just popped out in front of us had a look and went back in the grass, then 2 more appeared. They seemed very used to people as one walked straight past us back down the track the way we came. Normally they are quite solitary, so seeing 3 together was cool.

* Six-banded Armadillos are related to anteaters and sloths, looking strange clearly runs in the family.

* Like human fingerprints, every head plate is unique to each armadillo.

* They are found in Surinam, east of the Andes, Amazon basin in Brazil, central Argentina, Uruguay.

* They can get to 75 cm in length (head to tail) and weigh around 6.5 kgs.

* They live in dry savannah, or drier parts of wet savannah.

* Unlike most armadillo species, Six-banded Armadillos remain active even under bright daylight.

* Armadillos are the only other species on the planet (along with humans) that can catch leprosy.

* They are omnivores and feed on a variety of plant matter, insects, small vertebrates and also carrion. 

* The female gives birth to 1 - 3 young and can give birth anytime of the year.

* Although the Six-banded Armadillo is classified as a species “of least concern”, it is important to note that they are often trapped and killed by farmers because of the armadillo’s love for sprouting corn shoots. They are also hunted and killed for their meat in northeastern Brazil. They are also killed for their tails, which are used by Argentinian Indians for carrying their fire making tools.