National Geographic

EXPLORE | BASIC INSTINCTSTHE MAMMAL LINEAGE of Xenarthra—sloths, anteaters, andarmadillos—has inhabited the Western Hemisphere since Paleocenetimes, some 65 million years ago. Clearly, they’ve been perpet-uating their species, but scientists rarely catch them in the act.Brazilian ecologist Nina Attias has. She’s spent years studyingthree of the 20 species of armadillos. Her doctoral research focusedon Euphractus sexcinctus, aka the yellow, or six-banded, armadillo(below), whose courtship rituals she has observed and filmed.In the Pantanal wetlands of Brazil, yellow armadillo amourblooms year-round. When males catch the scent of a female inestrus, they approach, and “she just starts running,” Attias says.“You’ll see a female running like crazy and a bunch of males chas-ing her.” Once a swift suitor manages to mount the female, “coitusactually happens while they’re running,” Attias says.Even as other males chase them, the couple stays coupled. Ithelps that among mammals, armadillos have one of the largestpenises relative to body size; an E. sexcinctus male may have a13-inch-long body and a six-inch-long penis. And if on-the-run sexsucceeds, 60 to 65 days later the female may bear one or two pups.Just procreating won’t ensure armadillos’ survival; they needhuman help. Brazil has a national plan for conserving three-bandedarmadillos. The state of Piauí has set aside parkland with the ani-mals’ protection in mind. And with support from the Institute forthe Conservation of Wild Animals, where Attias works, the state ofMato Grosso do Sul plans to track giant armadillos as an indicatorspecies, whose presence will help measure the success of habitatconservation eforts. —PATRICIA EDMONDS``````Know Your Armadillos1. THREEBANDEDOnly two armadillo species,the southern three-bandedand the Brazilian three-banded, roll into a ball ifthreatened. The InternationalUnion for the Conservationof Nature assesses the Brazil-ian (Tolypeutes tricinctus) asvulnerable, and the southern(T. matacus) as near threat-ened, chiefly due to habitatloss and hunting.2. NINEBANDEDThe armorlike carapace ofDasypus novemcinctus mayactually have up to 11 bands,bony plates connected byflexible tissue. The only arma-dillo whose ranks seem to beincreasing, it also has the larg-est range—in South, Central,and North America—which isexpanding as climates warm.3. GIANTFound across South America,Priodontes maximus, thelargest armadillo, can exceedfive feet long and 110 pounds.The IUCN assesses the speciesas vulnerable. Indigenouspeoples hunt it for meat,and some local farmers kill itbecause of a myth that saysseeing one brings bad luck.THE JOY OF THE CHASE—OR SEX AT HIGH SPEEDSPHOTOGRAPH BY JOEL SARTORE``````These yellow armadillos werephotographed at the NationalMississippi River Museum &Aquarium, Dubuque, Iowa.