Little armored one staying put

The nine-banded armadillo is one of about 20 kinds of armadillos in the Western Hemisphere. It is the only armadillo that lives in North America. This animal is similar in size and shape to the opossum, but the two are not related.

The word armadillo, which means "little armored one," is thought to be attributed to the Spanish explorer Hernando Cortez, who explored Mexico in the 1500s.

During the last 20 or 30 years, the nine-banded armadillo has been steadily extending its range northward and is now sometimes seen wandering as far north as southern Indiana and Nebraska. Fossil remains of a cousin of today's armadillos have been found in Canada dating to about 2 million years ago.

The nine-banded armadillo is probably here to stay. It is a strange if not impressive sight to see in the wilds of Southeast Missouri. But it is not well liked because of its propensity to dig.

I photographed this one digging and eating earthworms on a dreary evening last week. The temperature was in the low 40s.

Armadillos are known to carry leprosy, but the odds of contracting this bacterial disease are almost nil since most people are immune and only a small percentage of armadillos are carriers.

Through the Woods is a weekly nature photo column by Aaron Horrell. Find this column at semissourian.com to order a reprint of the photo.