202 



A 11 M A D I L L O. 



The colour is blackish, and hence it is sometimes 

 styled the black armadillo. 



This species is very generally distributed, and als 

 very abundant. It is found from Guiana to pretty 

 far south in Paraguay ; it frequents the open fields 

 and not the woods, and it does not quit though man 

 takes possession and cultivates. It is nocturnal in 

 in its habits, very timid, tolerably swift in its pace, 

 and a most expert burrower. Its flesh is more 

 esteemed by persons of European extraction than 

 that of most of the others, partly, no doubt, because 

 it is understood to live more upon vegetable matter. 

 But birds which live on vegetable matter are not so 

 highly flavoured as some of those which live upon 

 animal substances, and that may be the case with 

 armadilloes, which, as has been hinted, have some 

 resemblances to birds. It has not been ascertained 

 whether this species has ccecal appendages to its 

 intestines, though these are found in other species 

 said to be more fond of animal food. 



2. The Mule Armadillo (Dasi/pus hybridus}. The 

 trivial name hybridus, given to this species, is rather 

 absurd, because no species can be a hybrid, and no 

 hybrid can originate a species ; and the only thing 

 mulish about this one is that the ears stand up some- 

 thing after the fashion of those of the common mule. 

 This species does not appear to have been named 

 from the number of intermediate bands, which are 

 said to be six or seven. It is much smaller than the 

 peba, and has the tail and legs shorter and the ears 

 longer; altogether it is not above eighteen inches in 

 length, of which the head and body occupy two- 

 thirds, and the tail one. The brood of the female are 

 numerous, sometimes as many as a dozen, and it is 

 said that each litter are always all of one sex. 

 D'Azzara found this to be the case in one instance ; 

 but in animals so numerous, one instance is not 

 sufficient to establish a general fact. This species 

 extends into more temperate latitudes than the 

 former, and is found abundantly in the pampas, even 

 to the southward of Buenos Ayres. It is diurnal in 

 its habits, and not nearly so dexterous in burrowing 

 as the peba. 



3. The Totou verdadeiro (Dasypus vcrdadeiro} is 

 a species resembling the former in many respects, 

 but much less perfectly known. Its chief character 

 is a sort of horn, or single horny sheath on the point 

 of the tail. It has been observed in Brazil, where it 

 inhabits the woods, lives in burrows, and is diurnal in 

 its motions. 



APARS. This division resembles the former in the 

 the structure of the feet; but the teeth in each side 

 of both jaws are generally nine or ten. They have 

 the power of forming themselves so completely into a 

 ball, that they may be rolled, tumbled, and thrown 

 about without sustaining any injury. There is but a 

 single known species ; and that one, though found in 

 Brazil, in Paraguay, and as far southward as Buenos 

 Ayres, is by no means abundant in any known locality. 

 That species is 



4. The Mataco (Da&ypus apar). This is the three- 

 banded armadillo of Linnaeus, and the three bands on 

 it are very conspicuous, more from thelarger size of the 

 pieces of which they are made up, than of the pieces 

 which compose the bucklers. The head of this species 

 is about three inches long, and pear-shaped ; the body 

 a foot long, and rather lumpy or clumsy ; and the tail 

 is not quite two inches long, flattened and blunted at 

 the point. The ears are short, rounded, and wide 



apart from each other. The bucklers advance very 

 far forward toward the chin, and descend very much 

 at the crupper ; and the pieces of which they appear 

 to be made up are so irregular that it is not very easy 

 to trace them in regular transverse rows. The inter- 

 mediate bands are formed of granulated rectangular 

 pieces, which form a remarkable contrast with the 

 rest of the armour. It is said not to burrow, at least 

 to the same extent, or with the same facility, as most 

 of the other species ; but still it is not without its 

 means of defence in the facility and firmness with 

 which it rolls itself into a perfect ball, and thereby 

 presents nothing but armour at all points. Its habits 

 are not very well known. 



ENCOUBERTS. The animals of this division have 

 nine or ten teeth on each side of both jaws, and also 

 some teeth on the intermaxillary bones of the upper 

 jaw, which may perhaps be considered as a sort of 

 fore-teeth. They are not, however, incisive teeth in 

 any ordinary meaning of the term, but round, stand- 

 ing apart, and fit only for prehension, like the teeth 

 in the jaws, so that the animals of this division have 

 still only the same kind of teeth as the others, though 

 two of them are differently placed. They have five 

 toes on all the extremities. There are three known 

 species. 



5. The Poyou (Dasypus cncouberf). This is the 

 six-banded armadillo of the Linnaean arrangement, 

 and the weasel-headed armadillo of Grew, by which 

 name it is still often popularly described in this 



The Poyou. 



country. Its length is about sixteen inches, and the 

 tail about eight. The head rather large, flat on the 

 forehead, triangular in shape, and blunt at the muzzle. 

 The eyes are rather small, and the ears erect, and 

 wide of each other. The armour does not descend 

 laterally so low, either on the body or the legs, as in 

 the species hitherto described ; the legs are also 

 larger, thicker, and stronger ; the feet and claws 

 longer ; and the whole expression indicative of a more 

 powerful and energetic animal. The armour on the 

 back is very broad, and the breadth of the animal 

 corresponds, so that it appears one of the widest of 

 the mammalia in proportion. The great breadth is 

 particularly conspicuous when it squats down, as it 

 often does, for the purpose of rest, and probably also 

 of concealment ; as in these cases it entirely folds up 

 the legs, and the edges of the armour touch the 

 ground. The number of moveable bands is not con- 

 tantly six, but often seven or eight ; and these and 

 the bucklers are of a whitish colour, while the feet, 

 which are covered with scales and tubercles, have a 

 tinge of yellow ; from between the bucklers there arise 

 a few greyish bristly hair/s ; and the under part of the 

 animal is tolerably well supplied with hairy covering. 



