First encounter, armidillo

HRS · Jul 3, 2006

This past weekend, I was out in the corn patch picking some silver queen when three armadillos walked up on me. Actually, at the time I was sitting in the shade pulling the shucks on a bucket of corn when I heard something rustling in the leaves under an oak tree maybe twenty feet away. They were making quite a bit of noise and I could not see them right off, so I started going over what it possible could be. I quickly thought and then ruled out deer, coyote, and squirrel. I had settled on a covey of quail, but at that time my little yorkie also heard the noise and rushed over to the tree to investigate. Nothing flushed, and he kept backing off out of their way. I still wasn't able to see what was making all the noise. So I called to him, thinking snake, when I saw what I thought was a shell. So I called to my wife and daughter to come see the tortoise I spied pushing along. I stood and took two steps then called back for them to hurry, it was an armadillo. I was aware that they had actually moved into Georgia some time ago, but I had never seen one alive until this moment, several road kill. Yet, here they were, on my field. The three of them were looking for something under the tree, I guess acorns. But the thing that surprised me the most was that they were not afraid of us, or maybe they did not know we were there. We walked closer to the tree, maybe ten feet from where they were eating, and I continued to talk to my wife about them. They did not pay us any attention. After a couple of minutes, one of them came close enough to the clearing and realized that we were there. It shuffled out a couple of feet toward my daughter and wife. Just as I was telling my wife to pick up my daughter, for I did not know if they bite or anything, it stopped, sniffed the air, spun around and ran back in the woods a few yards. But then it turned around and returned to foraging under the oak, again ignoring us. So we watched for a few more minutes and returned to our own work. This all happened midday. Are they always this carefree around people? What problems do they pose that I need to be mindful of?

hudr · Jul 3, 2006

Ah, yes. Amadillo a.k.a. "Texas Speed bumps".('round here, anyway).
They usually don't mind people as long as the people in question aren't trying to disrupt whatever they are doing. And what they are doing is usually wreaking havoc on a flowerbed. They have some innate ability to pick out the most expensive, desirable plants first then work down to general destruction. An armadillo can dig a hole and hide faster than you can say "scat!".

HRS · Jul 4, 2006

Great! Something else to feed. I'm SICK of the deer. This year they ate every watermelon and pea that I planted along with the corn. So I guess I'll have 'dillos in the garden next. This winter I'll invest in a fence.

RickS · Jul 4, 2006

HRS, armadillos are not dangerous, other than carrying some parasites (they can get diseases that are bad for people, can't remember what right now). They eat worms, bugs, etc, but not mammals.

Do NOT make them comfortable around you or you will have a yard resembling swiss cheese in short order. They are excellent diggers and make large holes (say six to eight inches in diameter) that swallow lawn mower tires and shoes. They are attracted to moist soft soil, like a yard or flower bed. I've never tried a fence to keep them out. I think they would just dig under it. This is one of those situations where you can't really win the war. Both sides will sustain some casualties. You'll lose a few plants, maybe sprain an ankle in a hole, and have an upset wife. The armadillo often gets a bullet, but there are more where he came from and they will send in reinforcements. Good luck.

HRS · Jul 4, 2006

Rick, Thanks. Well, if they like moist soil, they are here to stay. Many springs and a creek borders my property. I had a couple of guys over today, and they said they had heard that the dillos carry leprosy. I responded that I had not heard of anyone in the US coming down with that. So, I'm not sure about what was said. But your comment about the holes clears up some misunderstanding another one of my buddies has about holes he has been seeing. He told me he has gophers! I laughed. Not in Georgia. I started talking about moles, but he stopped me and said that these things were making huge holes, much like what you described. I'll tell him this week what's making those "gopher" holes.

Bird · Jul 5, 2006

They are attracted to moist soft soil

You ought to see what they can do to the greens on golf courses.

I've heard that the solution is to be sure you have no grubs and such for them to eat.

swiftboot · Jul 5, 2006

HRS, we calls them 'possum-on-th-half shell' down here. I dont think the leprosey thing is an issue if'n you cooks them real done. On a more serious note, moth balls scattered about in your flower beds will deter them somewhat and in the burrow holes. I reckon its a regional thing, but those 'gophers' are called 'salamanders' down here, little furry creatures that burrow in the ground and leave piles of dug sand on top of the ground. Some newcomers think these piles of sand are fire ant beds as they are so many scattered across some pastures. In further explanation, we refer to the land tortoise as 'gophers' (go figure) btw, they eat pretty good too!!