What is an armadillo's natural diet, and how does it get its food?

Armadillos have a low metabolic rate and because of that they carry very little fat on their armored bodies. Because of their low metabolic rate, these animals tend to avoid places that have cold climate and they prefer instead to live in warm and temperate climates like those found in grasslands, rain forests, and deserts. Even in these warm habitats, armadillos sleep up to 15 hours a day to save on their energy reserves. Now, you probably ask yourself what armadillos do when they wake up from 15 hours of sleep. Well, these odd animals usually look for food when they wake up. But what food do they look for? What is the natural diet of an armadillo? Let’s find that out now.

Basic Diet
Most types of armadillos forage for food in the early morning or in the evening hours for a variety of insects, invertebrates. These animals are fond of eating insects such as grubs, beetles, and worms. Like numerous other burrowing animals, armadillos have extremely poor eyesight so their hunting skills mainly rely on their sense of smell. Fortunately, these wild animals have exceptionally great sense of smell.

Typical Ants and Termites
Do you know what food is a favorite among armadillos? Believe it or not, it is ants and termites that are favorite food among armadillos; the strong legs and large front claws of these wild animals help them dig as deep as they need in order to find their termites and ants. Once an armadillo find an ant or a termite, the wild anima’s long tongue will do an excellent job of extracting termites and ants and from their underground tunnels. Another interesting thing about armadillos is that they secrete a sticky saliva that helps them hang on to even the most agile bugs and insects.

Fire Ants
Various types of research into armadillo’s diet show that armadillos are one of the few natural predators of the notorious fire ants. Armadillos have been known to burrow into the mounds of fire ants during droughts when other types of insects they eat are more difficult to find. Although this seems terribly unpleasant to anyone who has been bitten by a fire ant, armadillos only eat the young and defenseless fire ants that are usually located near the surface of their colony.