armadillo

armadillo

Armadillo and armadillo (in Portugal) is a common name for mammals belonging to the order and Cingulata Dasypodidae family. It characterized by the armor covering the body. Natives of the Americas, armadillos inhabit savannas, savannas, riparian forests and wet forests. They are important for medicine, since they are the only animals besides man, capable of contracting leprosy, being used in the studies of the disease.

Etymology

"Armadillo" is derived from the Tupi ta'tu. "Dasypodidae" came from the junction of the terms δασύς Greek (dasys): "hair, hairy" and πούς, ποδός (pous, Podos): "standing," meaning, so "hairy feet."

ecological issues

Armadillos have great ecological importance, because they are able to feed on insects (they are therefore insectivorous animals), contributing to a balance of populations of ants and termites. At the University of the Campaign Region in Alegrete, in Rio Grande do Sul, in Brazil, a research on the diet of armadillos revealed that a single copy of mullite armadillo (Dasypus hybridus) with 2.5 kg of weight is able to consume 8855 invertebrates in a single night.

When these animals are hunted for their hunting value (food for hunting), ends up unbalancing the ecosystem because it annuls a natural control of insects, favoring the increase of those invertebrates and resulting in economic problems for the region.