Brazilian three-banded armadillo

Last updated

Brazilian three-banded armadillo
Dasypodidae - Tolypeutes tricinctus.JPG
Museum specimen
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Cingulata
Family: Chlamyphoridae
Subfamily: Tolypeutinae
Genus: Tolypeutes
Species:
T. tricinctus
Binomial name
Tolypeutes tricinctus
Tolypeutes tricinctus distribution.svg
Geographic range
Synonyms
  • Dasypus tricinctusLinnaeus, 1758
  • Dasypus quadricinctusLinnaeus, 1758

The Brazilian three-banded armadillo (Tolypeutes tricinctus) is an armadillo species endemic to eastern Brazil, where it is known as tatu-bola (Portuguese pronunciation: [tɐˈtuˈbɔlɐ] , lit. ball armadillo). It is one of only two species of armadillo that can roll into a ball (the other is the southern three-banded armadillo). It has suffered a 30% decline in population in the last 10 years.

Contents

Names

It was known as kwaráu in the extinct Huamoé language of the Serra Negra in Pernambuco State, Brazil, [2] and as ˈkʌ̨́ñíkį̀ in the extinct Kambiwá language of Barreira, Petrolândia, Pernambuco. [3]

Anatomy

Brazilian three-banded armadillos have a head-and-body length of about 22 to 27 cm (8.7 to 10.6 in) and the tail is between 6 and 8 cm (2.4 and 3.1 in) long. They weigh 1–1.6 kg (2.2–3.5 lb). [4] The armor is composed of ossified dermal scutes covered by nonoverlapping, keratinized epidermal scales, which are connected by flexible bands of skin. This armor covers the back, sides, head, tail, ears, and outside surfaces of the legs. The underside of the body and the inner surfaces of the legs have no armored protection, and are covered instead by long, coarse hair. The genus Tolypeutes, which includes both the Brazilian and southern species of three-banded armadillos, is unique in the ability to roll up in a tight, almost impenetrable ball. This is because their armor is slightly looser than that of other armadillo genera, which allows for greater freedom of movement. The loose armor also creates a layer of air between the shell and the body, which insulates the animal. This higher capacity for thermoregulation allows them to survive in climates too arid for some of the other armadillo species. When the armadillo rolls into a defensive ball, the ears are tucked into the shell and the head and tail interlock to seal the shell completely. The teeth are soft and peg-like, adapted solely for smashing the exoskeletons of insects. [5]

Ecology

Range and habitat

As its name suggests, the Brazilian three-banded armadillo is indigenous to Brazil, living primarily in the northeastern part of the country, just south of the equator. They are rarely seen west of 50°W longitude. [5] The Brazilian three-banded armadillo lives primarily in open savannahs ( Cerrado ) and dry woodlands ( Caatinga ), where low rainfall and poor soil limit the vegetation to tall, woody grasses, scattered bushes, and gnarled trees. There is an abundance of cactus-like plants in the northern reaches of its range. [5]

Diet

The main staples of its diet are ants and termites, which it can smell through up to 20 cm, of soil. It finds food by shuffling slowly along with its nose to the ground. When it detects prey, it frantically digs a hole and thrust its nose into it, using its long, sticky tongue to lap up any insects it may find. Other foods include mollusks, worms, fruit, and carrion. [5]

Behavior

The burrows of Brazilian three-banded armadillo Burrows of Tolypeutes tricinctus.jpg
The burrows of Brazilian three-banded armadillo
Tolypeutes tricinctus rolled into a defensive ball Brazilian three-banded armadillo (Tolypeutes tricinctus) 2, Natural History Museum, London, Mammals Gallery.JPG
Tolypeutes tricinctus rolled into a defensive ball

Armadillos are chiefly solitary, but this species will occasionally travel in small family groups of up to three members. They are largely nocturnal, but have been known to forage during the day. All the armadillos are spectacular diggers, but unlike most of the other species, three-banded armadillos do not dig in defense or to find shelter. They prefer to rest under bushes, rather than dig burrows, and their ability to roll into a ball makes defensive digging unnecessary. When they are not foraging, they move with a sort of trot, bouncing on the tips of their front toes, while their hind feet slap flatly on the ground. They mark their territories with secretions from glands on their face, feet, and rump. When threatened, they occasionally do not seal their armor completely, but wait until they are touched. They then quickly snap shut in an effort to startle the predator. [5]

Reproduction

The mating season lasts from October to January, during which there is a brief courtship before mating. The female carries the young for a gestation period of 120 days at the end of which single, blind offspring is born. The newborn’s armor is soft, but its claws are fully developed, and it can walk and roll into a ball within hours of birth. The armor hardens by the third or fourth week, around the same time the eyes and earflaps open. The young armadillo is weaned at 10 weeks and reaches sexual maturity at 9–12 months. [5]

Threats

The defense system of the Brazilian three-banded armadillo makes it safe from the majority of predators. Adult pumas and jaguars are the only South American mammals powerful enough to be a natural threat. The real danger to armadillos is the destruction of their habitats to make room for livestock. In addition to this, this species is facing a dual threat of heavy hunting pressure and habitat loss. Due to its tendency to ball up when threatened, this species is frequently collected for food, which has resulted in significant population declines across its range. Additionally, growing agriculture, mining, and charcoal collecting have devastated and damaged its habitat. [5]

2014 FIFA World Cup mascot

The Caatinga Association, a Brazilian environmental NGO, launched in January 2012 a national campaign proposing the three-banded armadillo to become mascot of the 2014 FIFA World Cup hosted by Brazil. In March 2012, the Brazilian weekly, Veja, reported the three-banded armadillo would be the official mascot for the FIFA World Cup. Official announcement came in September 2012. [6]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Armadillo</span> New World placental mammals in the order Cingulata

Armadillos are New World placental mammals in the order Cingulata. They form part of the superorder Xenarthra, along with the anteaters and sloths. 21 extant species of armadillo have been described, some of which are distinguished by the number of bands on their armor. All species are native to the Americas, where they inhabit a variety of different environments.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Xenarthra</span> Superorder of mammals including anteaters, sloths, and armadillos

Xenarthra is a major clade of placental mammals native to the Americas. There are 31 living species: the anteaters, tree sloths, and armadillos. Extinct xenarthrans include the glyptodonts, pampatheres and ground sloths. Xenarthrans originated in South America during the late Paleocene about 60 million years ago. They evolved and diversified extensively in South America during the continent's long period of isolation in the early to mid Cenozoic Era. They spread to the Antilles by the early Miocene and, starting about 3 million years ago, spread to Central and North America as part of the Great American Interchange. Nearly all of the formerly abundant megafaunal xenarthrans became extinct at the end of the Pleistocene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sport Club do Recife</span> Football club

Sport Club do Recife, known as Sport Recife or Sport, is a Brazilian sports club, located in the city of Recife, in the Brazilian state of Pernambuco. Founded in 1905, the club currently plays in Série B. In football, the club has won six CBD/CBF titles, including three national and three regional. Its greatest achievements are winning the 1987 Brazilian Championship and 2008 Copa do Brasil. In addition to professional football, the club also participates in women's football and Olympic sports, such as rowing, swimming, hockey, basketball, futsal, volleyball, table tennis, taekwondo, judo and athletics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pink fairy armadillo</span> Species of mammals

The pink fairy armadillo is the smallest species of armadillo, first described by Richard Harlan in 1825. This solitary, desert-adapted animal is endemic to central Argentina and can be found inhabiting sandy plains, dunes, and scrubby grasslands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Giant armadillo</span> Species of mammals belonging to the armadillo order of xenarthrans

The giant armadillo, colloquially tatu-canastra, tatou, ocarro or tatú carreta, is the largest living species of armadillo. It lives in South America, ranging throughout as far south as northern Argentina. This species is considered vulnerable to extinction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cingulata</span> Order of armored mammals from the Americas

Cingulata, part of the superorder Xenarthra, is an order of armored New World placental mammals. Dasypodids and chlamyphorids, the armadillos, are the only surviving families in the order. Two groups of cingulates much larger than extant armadillos existed until recently: pampatheriids, which reached weights of up to 200 kg (440 lb) and chlamyphorid glyptodonts, which attained masses of 2,000 kg (4,400 lb) or more.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Six-banded armadillo</span> Species of mammals belonging to the armadillo order of xenarthrans

The six-banded armadillo, also known as the yellow armadillo, is an armadillo found in South America. The sole extant member of its genus, it was first described by Swedish zoologist Carl Linnaeus in 1758. The six-banded armadillo is typically between 40 and 50 centimeters in head-and-body length, and weighs 3.2 to 6.5 kilograms. The carapace is pale yellow to reddish brown, marked by scales of equal length, and scantily covered by buff to white bristle-like hairs. The forefeet have five distinct toes, each with moderately developed claws.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nine-banded armadillo</span> Type of mammal

The nine-banded armadillo, also known as the nine-banded long-nosed armadillo or common long-nosed armadillo, is a mammal found in North, Central, and South America, making it the most widespread of the armadillos. Its ancestors originated in South America, and remained there until the formation of the Isthmus of Panama allowed them to enter North America as part of the Great American Interchange. The nine-banded armadillo is a solitary, mainly nocturnal animal, found in many kinds of habitats, from mature and secondary rainforests to grassland and dry scrub. It is an insectivore, feeding chiefly on ants, termites, and other small invertebrates. The armadillo can jump 91–120 cm (3–4 ft) straight in the air if sufficiently frightened, making it a particular danger on roads. It is the state small mammal of Texas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southern three-banded armadillo</span> Type of Armadillo

The southern three-banded armadillo, also known as La Plata three-banded armadillo or Azara's domed armadillo, is an armadillo species from South America. It is found in parts of northern Argentina, southwestern Brazil, Paraguay and Bolivia, at elevations from sea level to 770 m (2,530 ft).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grande Sertão Veredas National Park</span> Brazilian park

The Grande Sertão Veredas National Park is a national park located on the border between the states of Minas Gerais and Bahia, Brazil.

<i>Dasypus</i> Genus of mammals belonging to the armadillo order of xenarthrans

Dasypus is the only extant genus in the family Dasypodidae. Its species are known as long-nosed or naked-tailed armadillos. They are found in South, Central, and North America, as well as on the Caribbean islands of Grenada, Trinidad and Tobago. Members of Dasypus are solitary and primarily nocturnal to avoid temperature extremes and predation. They exist in numerous habitats ranging from brush to grassland areas and are mainly insectivorous.

Raso da Catarina Ecological Station is a strictly protected ecological station in the state of Bahia in Brazil. It lies in the Raso da Catarina ecoregion of the Caatinga biome.

<i>Tolypeutes</i> Genus of mammals belonging to the armadillo order of xenarthrans

The genus Tolypeutes contains the two species of three-banded armadillos. They are restricted to open and semi-open habitats in South America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fuleco</span>

Fuleco was the official mascot of the 2014 FIFA World Cup, hosted in Brazil. Fuleco is a Brazilian three-banded armadillo, a species of armadillo which is native to Brazil and categorized as a vulnerable species on the IUCN Red List. Fuleco was officially launched as part of Brazilian broadcaster TV Globo's weekly Fantástico entertainment show on 25 November 2012.

The marketing of the 2014 FIFA World Cup includes sale of tickets, support from sponsors and promotion through events that utilize the symbols and songs of the tournament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chlamyphoridae</span> Family of armadillos

Chlamyphoridae is a family of cingulate mammals. While glyptodonts have traditionally been considered stem-group cingulates outside the group that contains modern armadillos, there had been speculation that the extant family Dasypodidae could be paraphyletic based on morphological evidence. In 2016, an analysis of Doedicurus mtDNA found it was, in fact, nested within the modern armadillos as the sister group of a clade consisting of Chlamyphorinae and Tolypeutinae. For this reason, all extant armadillos but Dasypus were relocated to a new family.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Serra das Confusões National Park</span>

The Serra das Confusões National Park is a national park in the state of Piauí, Brazil.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Volvation</span> Defensive reaction

Volvation, is a defensive behavior in certain animals, in which the animal rolls its own body into a ball, presenting only the hardest parts of its integument, or its spines to predators.

References

  1. Miranda, F., Moraes-Barros, N., Superina, M. & Abba, A.M. (2014) Tolypeutes tricinctus. In: IUCN 2014. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.1.
  2. Pompeu Sobrinho, Thomaz. 1958. Línguas Tapuias desconhecidas do Nordeste: Alguns vocabulários inéditos. Boletim de Antropologia (Fortaleza-Ceará) 2. 3-19.
  3. Meader, Robert E. (1978). Indios do Nordeste: Levantamento sobre os remanescentes tribais do nordeste brasileiro (in Portuguese). Brasilia: SIL International.
  4. Armadillo Online: Tolypeutes tricinctus. Retrieved 14 June 2014.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Wildlife Explorer: Three-Banded Armadillo. USA: International Masters Publishers, 1998.
  6. "Fifa faz registro e confirma tatu-bola como mascote da Copa de 2014". ESPN (in Portuguese). 11 September 2012. Archived from the original on 13 September 2012. Retrieved 11 September 2012.