📸 PhotoPhoto: http://www.birdphotos.com · CC BY 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons Source
Southern Long-nosed Armadillo
Dasypus novemcinctus (Southern Long-nosed Armadillo · ココノオビアルマジロ)
💡 Everyday Comparisons for Size, Mass & Speed
- 💡 As one of the few animals that can host the leprosy bacterium, it is used in leprosy research.
- 💡 Its maximum weight of 7.7 kg is lighter than a 10 kg bag of rice (Comparison).
Reference standards: coach bus ~12 m, mid-size car ~4.9 m, compact car ~1 t, basketball hoop 3.05 m, credit card 8.56 cm.
Site-computed relative index from recorded values; not a formal scientific metric.
📖 1. Overview
The Southern Long-nosed Armadillo is a burrowing animal ranging from the southern United States to South America whose back is covered with bony plate armor.
🦴 2. Anatomy & Morphology
Its armor of bony plates covered with horny skin makes up about 16% of its body weight. Unlike three-banded armadillos, it cannot roll its body into a ball.
🔍 3. Ecology & Behavior
Invertebrates such as beetles and their larvae, termites, and earthworms make up over 90% of its diet by volume, while plants make up less than 10%. A single fertilized egg splits into four to produce identical quadruplets, and it can hold its breath for 6 minutes.
🇰🇷 4. Connection to Korea
No direct record connecting this species to Korea has been found.
📚 Sources & References
- • IUCN Red List LC (2026) — https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/268513068/268516717
- • IUCN Red List category LC — latest assessment at iucnredlist.org
- • mammaldiversity.org — 1000424
- • iucnredlist.org — 268516717
- • wikidata.org — Q649549
- • commons.wikimedia.org — File:Nine-banded Armadillo.jpg
- • animaldiversity.org — Dasypus novemcinctus
- • Silhouette: PhyloPic — Steven Traver · CC0 1.0
Recorded dimensions are widely cited representative estimates from public literature and may vary by study or specimen.