224 



EDENTATES. 



THE THREE-BANDED ARMADILLO. 



the general colour is dark grey, with a more or less marked brown tinge ; the 

 skin between the movable bands being whitish, while that on the under-surface 

 of the body is dusky. 



The apar is found throughout the Argentine pampas ; and, in common with 

 the other two members of the genus, differs from the rest of the armadillos in 

 being able to roll itself up into a complete ball, with the shield of the head and 

 the bony upper-surface of the tail packed away side by side, and thus completely 



filling up the notches in 

 the scapular and lumbar 

 shields. In this state the 

 creature is perfectly safe 

 from nearly all foes save 

 man. For instance, when 

 a dog attempts to seize 

 one of these armadillos, it 

 is compelled, from the size 

 of its mouth, to make a 

 bite upon one side, upon 

 which, as Mr. Darwin tells 

 us, the ball immediately 

 rolls away from its grasp. 

 The apar is mainly diurnal 



in its habits ; and trusts for defence to its power of rolling itself into a ball, not 

 dwelling in burrows like the members of the other genera. When running, these 

 armadillos tread only on the tips of the claws of the fore- feet, and consequently have 

 the edges of the carapace raised high above the ground. Our figure represents a 

 specimen with the fore-legs stretched out in front preparatory to digging up an 

 ant's nest. In captivity these armadillos will eat fruit and green vegetables ; 

 although, on account of the small size of their mouths, it is necessary that all the 

 food with which they are supplied should be chopped up into small pieces. Fossil 

 remains of armadillos of this species, together with others belonging to all the 

 genera except Priodon, are met with in the cavern-deposits of Lagoa Santa, in Brazil ; 

 and are mostly referable to species still existing in the country. 



The Peba armadillo (Tatusia novemcincta), ranging from Texas 

 to Paraguay, together with the mulita " little mule " (T. hybrida), 

 of Argentina and other parts of South America, and certain allied species, differ from 

 all the members of the family yet noticed by the elongated ears being closely 

 approximated at their roots, by the female having a pair of teats on the abdomen, in 

 addition to the two on the breast, and by the circumstance that the permanent teeth, 

 with the exception of the last pair in each jaw, are preceded by deciduous milk-teeth, 

 each furnished with two roots. The permanent teeth, which are either seven or eight 

 in number in each side of both the upper and lower jaws, are very small in 

 proportion to the size of the skull, and do not come into use until the animal has 

 well-nigh attained its full dimensions. The head is narrow, and produced into a 

 nearly cylindrical snout, obliquely truncated at the extremity; and the bony 

 palate of the skull has a backward prolongation formed in the same manner as 



Peba Armadillo. 



