The hairy long-nosed armadillo or woolly armadilloGardner AL 2007
Mammals of South America Vol 1: Marsupials, Xenarthrans, Shrews and Bats
- University of Chicago Press, Chicago. (''Dasypus pilosus'') is a species of

armadillo Armadillos (meaning "little armored ones" in Spanish) are New World placental mammals in the order Cingulata. The Chlamyphoridae and Dasypodidae are the only surviving families in the order, which is part of the superorder Xenarthra, alo ...

in the family Dasypodidae. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

. Its natural

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

s are

subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests (TSMF), also known as tropical moist forest, is a subtropical and tropical forest habitat type defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature. Description TSMF is generally found in large, discon ...

and subtropical or tropical moist montane forest. The

International Union for Conservation of Nature The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

used to consider it a "

vulnerable species A vulnerable species is a species which has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as being threatened with extinction unless the circumstances that are threatening its survival and reproduction improve. Vulnera ...

" but has changed this assessment to "

data deficient A data deficient (DD) species is one which has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as offering insufficient information for a proper assessment of conservation status to be made. This does not necessaril ...

" because so little is known about the animal and the threats it faces.

Description

The hairy long-nosed armadillo is poorly known. Like other species of '' Dasypus'', it has a hard armour-like shell, called a carapace. The armour consists of ossified dermal plates composed of a number of movable bands covered by leathery skin. The rostrum is long and slender and is more than half the length of the head. There are long, hairless ears and a slender tail, tapering to a point. The front part of the tail is protected by keratinised rings of scales. The front feet have four strong claws and the hind feet five. It has a distinctive coat of long reddish-brown or grayish-brown fur which grows through tiny pores in its armour. It has similar bodily proportions to other armadillos but is unlikely to be confused with any other species. One male individual studied had a total length of including a tail of .

Distribution and habitat

This armadillo is

to Peru, where it is found on the eastern side of the

Andes Mountains The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...

. It is present in the regions of San Martín, where it is present in the Rio Abiseo National Park, La Libertad,

Huánuco Huánuco (; qu, Wanuku) is a city in central Peru. It had a population of 196,627 as of 2017 and in 2015 it had a population of 175,068. It is the capital of the Huánuco Region and the Huánuco District. It is the seat of the diocese of Hu� ...

and Junín and has also been reported from the region of Amazonas. Its habitat is the

Yungas The Yungas (Aymara ''yunka'' warm or temperate Andes or earth, Quechua ''yunka'' warm area on the slopes of the Andes) is a bioregion of a narrow band of forest along the eastern slope of the Andes Mountains from Peru and Bolivia, and extends into ...

, a stretch of subtropical, deciduous and evergreen forests along the eastern slopes of the mountains. It seems to frequent dense undergrowth in limestone areas.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q743510 Armadillos Endemic fauna of Peru Mammals of Peru Vulnerable animals Vulnerable biota of South America Mammals described in 1856 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot