---
title: "What the sources say about the Pink Fairy Armadillo | AnimalTracks.wiki"
description: "48 claims from the Pink Fairy Armadillo profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it."
image: "https://animaltracks.wiki/images/animals/pink-fairy-armadillo-1.webp"
canonical: "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/pink-fairy-armadillo/sources/"
---

# What the sources say about the Pink Fairy Armadillo (*Chlamyphorus truncatus*)

> 48 claims from the Pink Fairy Armadillo profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it. A "..." marks a cut in a quote and [brackets] an insertion.

Profile: [Pink Fairy Armadillo](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/pink-fairy-armadillo/)

## Chlamyphorus truncatus (pink fairy armadillo). Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan, 2017.

https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Chlamyphorus_truncatus/

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| The world's smallest armadillo | Pink fairy armadillos are the smallest extant armadillo. |
| Argentina's Smallest Armadillo | Pink fairy armadillos are the smallest extant armadillo. |
| the smallest living armadillo species | Pink fairy armadillos are the smallest extant armadillo. |
| It is found only in the deserts and scrublands of central Argentina | Pink fairy armadillos are endemic to the deserts and scrub lands of central Argentina. (note: 'only' glosses 'endemic' for an 11-14 audience; same strength.) |
| mainly in the provinces of Mendoza, San Luis, Buenos Aires, La Pampa and San Juan | They are mainly found in the provinces of Mendoza, San Luis, Buenos Aires, La Pampa and San Juan. |
| It lives mainly in loose sand dunes, along with dry grassland and sandy plains, from sea level up to 1,500 meters | Pink fairy armadillos are found in dry grasslands and sand filled plains. They are a fossorial species that lives primarily in loose sandy dunes ... The pink fairy armadillo can live anywhere from sea level to 1500m in elevation. |
| Arid sand dunes and dry scrubland, mainly across central Argentina's Mendoza, San Luis, Buenos Aires, La Pampa and San Juan provinces, from sea level to 1,500 meters | They are mainly found in the provinces of Mendoza, San Luis, Buenos Aires, La Pampa and San Juan. ... The pink fairy armadillo can live anywhere from sea level to 1500m in elevation. (note: stats.habitat, kept in sync with the body's range paragraph.) |
| Animal Diversity Web gives an average of 120 grams (4 ounces) | an average body mass of 120g. ... Average mass 120 g 4.23 oz (note: 4 ounces rounds the source's own 4.23 oz.) |
| It is generally called an insectivore, but it will eat plants if the right conditions arise | They are generally called insectivores, but they will feed on plants if the right conditions arise. |
| the main food anyone has observed it eating is ants | The main food that pink fairy armadillos have been observed eating were ants. |
| Generally called an insectivore; ants are the main food observed, and it eats plants if the right conditions arise | They are generally called insectivores, but they will feed on plants if the right conditions arise. The main food that pink fairy armadillos have been observed eating were ants. (note: stats.diet, kept in sync with the body's diet paragraph.) |
| It is active at night or at dawn and dusk | It has also been noted that pink fairy armadillos are nocturnal or crepuscular. (note: 'at dawn and dusk' glosses 'crepuscular'.) |
| it has digging claws on its front legs | the pink fairy armadillo has digging claws on its front legs |
| This armadillo's light pink carapace is attached to its body only by a thin membrane running down the middle of its back | their carapace is only attached dorsally by a thin membrane down the midline. ... their armored shell which is light pinkish in color |
| It has 24 bands, plus an extra vertical plate at the rear that gives the shell its blunt end | They have 24 bands on their armored shell which is light pinkish in color and there is an extra vertical plate at the end of the armor that gives the carapace its blunt end. |
| Its eyes are small | the pink fairy armadillo has digging claws on its front legs, reduced eye size, and a fusiform body shape. |
| Its main defense against predators is the carapace covering its back, and its burrows and tunnels give it a refuge | The main defense against predation in this species is the carapace covering their back. Being semi-fossorial their burrows and tunnels are a refuge from predators. |
| Its greatest predators are domestic cats and dogs | The greatest predators of the pink fairy armadillo are domestic cats and dogs. |
| It is so rarely seen that, according to Animal Diversity Web, the local person known for having seen the most had seen only 12 in 45 years | Pink fairy armadillos are so rare that the local who is known for having seen the most has only seen 12 in the last 45 years. |
| have never been seen drinking, which suggests they may get their water from their food | the few that have survived for any length of time in captivity have never been seen drinking, suggesting they may obtain water from their food. |
| Using metabolic water is an adaptation seen in many desert species | The use of metabolic water is an adaptation seen in many desert species. |
| Nobody knows for sure | It is not known if pink fairy armadillos consume liquids |
| it lives mainly in loose sand dunes | They are a fossorial species that lives primarily in loose sandy dunes |
| with claws on the front legs and small eyes | the pink fairy armadillo has digging claws on its front legs, reduced eye size, and a fusiform body shape. |
| Its light pink shell | their armored shell which is light pinkish in color |

## Chlamyphorus truncatus. AnAge: The Animal Ageing and Longevity Database, Human Ageing Genomic Resources.

https://genomics.senescence.info/species/entry.php?species=Chlamyphorus_truncatus

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| the AnAge ageing database lists 44.3 grams | Adult weight 44.3 g (note: AnAge attributes the figure to Smith et al. (2003), Body mass of late Quaternary mammals.) |
| One captive individual lived 4.3 years, but no maximum has been established, and it may be much longer | Maximum longevity Not yet established ... Little is known about the longevity of these animals but one specimen lived 4.3 years in captivity [ 0671 ]. Their maximum longevity may be much longer, though. |
| Lifespan is just as uncertain | Little is known about the longevity of these animals (note: Framing sentence for the AnAge longevity line that follows.) |

## Superina & Abba (2025). Chlamyphorus truncatus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2025: e.T4704A244100423.

https://doi.org/10.2305/iucn.uk.2025-1.rlts.t4704a244100423.en

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| The IUCN lists it as Data Deficient | IUCN Red List category: Data Deficient (DD). (note: Category read through GBIF's copy of the Red List (2025 assessment). The gloss that follows is the category's definition, not a species claim.) |

## Delsuc et al. (2012). Molecular phylogenetics unveils the ancient evolutionary origins of the enigmatic fairy armadillos. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2011.11.008

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Scientists recognize two species of fairy armadillo, also called pichiciegos: this one and the Chacoan fairy armadillo | Fairy armadillos or pichiciegos (Xenarthra, Dasypodidae) are among the most elusive mammals. ... Two distinct species with allopatric distributions are recognized |
| This species is restricted to central Argentina, while its cousin lives in the Gran Chaco of Argentina, Paraguay and Bolivia | Chlamyphorus truncatus is restricted to central Argentina, while Calyptophractus retusus occurs in the Gran Chaco of Argentina, Paraguay, and Bolivia. |
| DNA evidence puts the split between the two species at around 17 million years ago, a date that supports placing them in separate genera | The ancient divergence date (∼17Mya) for separation between the two species supports their taxonomic classification into distinct genera. |

## Krmpotic et al. (2023). The double skin of the pink fairy armadillo, the peculiar integumentary system of Chlamyphorus truncatus Cingulata (Mammalia, Xenarthra). Journal of Zoology.

https://doi.org/10.1111/jzo.13136

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| an Argentine sand-burrower wearing a shell of bony plates and hardened scales | This armadillo has almost completely subterranean habits and, unlike all other subterranean mammals, C. truncatus has a carapace composed of osteoderms and cornified scales. (note: Reviewer cut 'no other underground mammal has': molecular-2012 gives the Chacoan fairy armadillo, an armoured armadillo, the same 'subterranean and nocturnal lifestyle', so the abstract's absolute is wider than the page can stand behind. 'sand-burrower' glosses the subterranean habit; ADW places it in loose sandy dunes.) |
| It measures less than 15 centimeters (6 inches) from head to tail | weighing about 100 grams and measuring less than 15 cm from head to tail (note: 6 inches is a unit conversion of 15 cm.) |
| a 2023 study of its skin says about 100 grams | weighing about 100 grams (note: 2023 is the reference's publication year (Krmpotic et al. 2023).) |
| This armadillo spends almost its whole life below ground, and it carries a carapace made of bony plates and hardened scales | This armadillo has almost completely subterranean habits and, unlike all other subterranean mammals, C. truncatus has a carapace composed of osteoderms and cornified scales. (note: 'below ground' glosses 'subterranean'. The source's 'unlike all other subterranean mammals' was cut: the Chacoan fairy armadillo is also subterranean (molecular-2012).) |
| An almost entirely underground mammal in a shell of bony plates and hardened scales, and almost all of that shell is flexible | unlike all other subterranean mammals, C. truncatus has a carapace composed of osteoderms and cornified scales. ... the flexibility of almost all of its carapace (note: stats.superpower. 'The only' cut for the same reason as the body's blockquote.) |
| A 2023 study of its skin found that almost all of the carapace is flexible, one of several features that set it apart from other armadillos | Our results show that the integumentary system presents unique characteristics compared to other armadillos, such as the peculiar skin under the dorsal shield and the flexibility of almost all of its carapace. (note: 2023 is the reference's publication year (Krmpotic et al. 2023).) |
| its whiskers, or vibrissae, keep the basic armadillo structure but are thinner and shorter | the vibrissae conserve the structure of the armadillos (the cavernous sinuses extend throughout the follicle‐sinus complex) with a thinning and shortening of the hairs (note: 'shorter' is the source's 'shortening'.) |
| a change researchers think is probably linked to passively monitoring its surroundings | which are probably linked to passive monitoring of the surrounding environment |
| The arrangement of hairs on the armor plates near its rear is modified too, in a way scientists think may help it move through sandy tunnels | the modification of the arrangement of hairs in the first pelvic buckler osteoderms may suggest biomechanical adaptations, such as an improvement in the displacement through the tunnels of sandy soils. |
| Armor for a Life Underground | This armadillo has almost completely subterranean habits and, unlike all other subterranean mammals, C. truncatus has a carapace composed of osteoderms and cornified scales. (note: Blockquote lead-in; replaces 'Built Like Nothing Else Underground'.) |
| weightKg: 0.1 | weighing about 100 grams |

## Superina (2011). Husbandry of a pink fairy armadillo (Chlamyphorus truncatus): case study of a cryptic and little known species in captivity. Zoo Biology.

https://doi.org/10.1002/zoo.20334

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| it is extremely difficult to keep in captivity | These smallest of all extant armadillos are rarely observed in the field and extremely difficult to maintain under captive conditions. |
| One published case study kept a male in an artificial enclosure for eight months | This case study describes the husbandry of a male pink fairy armadillo that was maintained in an artificial environment for 8 months. |
| a stable, undisturbed setup with plenty of compact sand and hiding places on the surface was the key to keeping him alive | A stable, undisturbed environment consisting of abundant compact sand and hiding places on the surface was the key to its successful maintenance. |
| Any small change to his enclosure or diet triggered a stress response | Any slight modification to its environment or diet triggered a stress response. |
| he was fed a semi-liquid mix of ground cat food, insectivore diet, mashed banana, vitamins and minerals | The artificial diet consisted of a semiliquid mixture of ground cat food, insectivore diet, mashed banana, vitamins, and minerals. |