Feeding on insects, invertebrates, small reptiles and amphibians, and fruits and fungi, they spend their days scavaging on the forest floor. If you’re looking for more information about these lovely creatures, here is our guide on how they protect themselves.As one of the more unique species of Missouri, the armadillo plays a very important role in the ecosystem. Though their favorite foods are worms and other types of insects, they will also eat a wide variety of other small animals and plant materials. Read also: Armadillo Vs Pangolin: Side By Side ConclusionĪrmadillos have a very broad diet. So yes, armadillos will eat ants, but they tend to prefer other insects that are less irritating to them. If you’ve ever seen an armadillo rolling around in the dirt, it may be in an effort to remove the ants from their paws and scales. They may end up with ants crawling all over them. When attempting to eat ants, armadillos may dig into ant hills, greatly disturbing the entire ant colony in the process. Though it would seem that ants are not one of their favorite foods. Yes, armadillo will eat all different kinds of ants just as they will eat most other types of insects. But if they can’t get anything better, or if they are able to easily kill a snake, they will eat it.Īrmadillos may also eat snakes that they find already dead, as well as the grubs and maggots that tend to infest dead animals. Though they definitely seem to prefer worms and insects, occasionally, they have been seen eating snakes as well.Īrmadillos don’t seem to make a habit of eating snakes, as they prefer digging for worms and grubs. Do Armadillos Eat Snakes?Īt this point, it may not surprise you to learn that armadillos sometimes eat the strangest things. In fact, the little creatures seem to enjoy eating fruit enough that it is sometimes used in live animal traps as bait for catching armadillos. Sometimes they can be seen eating half spoiled fruit they find on the ground, underneath fruit trees or thrown out for birds. But occasionally, it seems, they do enjoy a sweet treat. Of course, armadillos don’t eat a whole lot of fruit, as less than 10 percent of their diet includes plant materials of any kind.
They will eat many different kinds of fruit, including bananas, pears, apricots, wild fruit, and berries. Once again, armadillos aren’t very picky, not even when it comes to fruit. Sometimes, armadillos will even eat fruit. Sometimes when digging around in gardens, they’ll chew on root vegetables like carrots and rutabagas. They may also eat a surprising amount of leafy greens like spinach and lettuce.Īrmadillos will also eat the seeds of various flowers and shrubs. Though they don’t typically eat a lot of plant materials, there are a wide variety of plants that they will eat if they are hungry or can’t find anything better.Īrmadillos enjoy the occasional vegetable such as pumpkin, corn, and green beans. That said, they don’t eat a whole lot of plant foods at least 90 percent of their diet consists of insects. Video can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: Texas Armadillo digging up the yard looking for bugs and worms () What Plants Do Armadillos Eat?Īs noted above, armadillos are omnivores, meaning they eat a little bit of everything. They may only be awake for 8 to 10 hours in a 24 hour period, spending the rest of their day asleep.įor this reason, they may be able to survive on a relatively smaller amount of food than animals of similar size.Ĭheck out this video of an armadillo scrounging around for bugs in the yard. What is known is that armadillos spend most of their waking time either digging for food or creating burrows. Aside from this number, though, there is not a lot of specific information available. One source claims the 9-banded armadillo can eat up to 40,000 ants in one setting, while the giant armadillo can eat up to 200,000. The exact amount of food armadillos eat varies and may depend on season and species. Aside from insects, some other foods they like to eat include small reptiles, mushrooms, fruits, veggies, seeds and other plant matter, eggs of birds and reptiles, and even carrion. They are omnivores, so they eat pretty much anything they can get.Īccording to the National Wildlife Federation, armadillos will eat nearly 500 different types of food. They also like all kinds of spiders, snails, beetles, ants, and even scorpions.Īrmadillos won’t stop at bugs and insects, though. In addition, armadillos will eat many other types of insects, such as grasshoppers, termites, and wasps.
Grubs, earthworms, and other ground-dwelling insects are some of their favorites.
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