March 15, 2005 (Vol. 25, No. 6)
URL:
http://www.msu.edu/~nixonjos/armadillo/index.html
Rating:
Strong Points: Interesting reading
Weak Points: Small audience
Summary:
Having lived ten years of my life in Oklahoma and in that time seen thousands of armadillos smashed on highways, I confess to wondering a bit about the subtitle of this page: “Welcome to the Wonderful World of Armadillos.” Everything is relative, I guess. A bizarre collection of organisms related most closely to anteaters and sloths, the armadillo is an evolutionary throwback that seems to be doing quite well today, thank you. The Armadillo Online! site is loaded with fascinating information about these armor-plated waddlers. Females can store sperm and give birth up to two years after mating, and armadillos can hold their breath for up to six minutes at a time and thus can walk along the bottoms of lakes or swim, when the need calls. Some roll up in balls, others always give birth to identical offspring. You want weird? You’ll find it here.
