LLELA Armadillo

As I was finishing up the Cottonwood Trail at LLELA yesterday I heard some rustling in the undergrowth to my left. I'd had similar experiences throughout the day, all of which had turned out to be either the wind or small birds. But this time, the source of the sound was different.

It was a nine-banded armadillo, rooting through the dirt looking for insects.  Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Colorado any more.

I was absolutely thrilled.  After three weeks in Texas, this was my first wildlife sighting of any note.  And I eagerly began snapping away in anticipation of him quickly scurrying off.

Here's the thing -- he didn't seem to care about me at all.  I don't think I've ever been around a wild animal so completely ambivalent to my presence.

So I kept shooting.  And moving around him trying to anticipate where he would head next, and be prepared to catch a view where his face was up out of the dirt and not obscured by all the plants.

So while staying in good shooting range of him wasn't an issue -- except for the occasions where he got so close to me I couldn't focus and had to actually move away -- catching him in the clear was another story entirely.

The area seemed to be a favorite dining spot.  There were piles of uprooted earth liberally spread around.

This was by far the most common view I had of him -- nose down in the ground, his little ears the only facial features showing.

I really can't understate how little he cared about me.  I'm not sure if that's due to the animal's poor vision or overconfidence in his armored shell.  But whatever the case, he didn't consider me the least bit threatening.

Occasionally he'd pull his head up and do a little hop.  But for the most part locomotion consisted of shuffling about chaotically, almost like an electric football player in its randomness.

This was the closest thing to an "action shot" I got.  You can see a little bit of daylight beneath his front claws.

I must have spent an hour and covered the length of a football field following this guy.  Judging by his complacency I suspect I'll see a lot more armadillos in the future.  But at least for this hour, he was the most interesting creature in the world to me.  And for the first time since we moved, I felt like Texas was finally starting to reveal some of her wonder.

Hurrah for armadillos!