Armadillos

When I was a kid, skunks were very common. Since then armadillos have become endemic in our part of the State, and it's been several years since I've seen a live one and probably average one road kill per year.
 
Have any of you , with Armadillo problems , heard the song "Armadillo Jackal" by Robert Earl Keen , a country-western singer/songwriter ? Go to YOUTUBE music , and search for "Armadillo Jackal lyrics" .
Listen to Robert Earl sing , while you read the lyrics (so that you can clearly understand his words) .

In the song he mentions "Halletsville" which is in Texas , somewhat near Texas A&M University , where he attended college . At his live concerts , fans would sometimes ask if this was how he earned extra spending money .

Then , before you develop this "Armadillo Blood Lust" , you can see that there may be consequences to your actions .

Me ? I have killed Armadillos with .22LR , shotguns , 1 with a "Wrist Rocket" slingshot shooting a 3/8" steel ball-bearing (full penetration , enter and exit) , and the most spectacular was a .308 Winchester , 150gr Silvertip , at 20 yards . It exploded !! Body parts , blood , guts , and Armadillo shell fragments raining-down within a 30 yard radius !!!
Yes , I was standing at 20 yards beside my vehicle , and it took quite a while to clean my vehicle , and my clothing .
Hey , I was 16 years old , and my first experience with the laws of physics - Cause/Effect relationship of close-range "Hydrostatic Shock" on a living creature .

DMP25-06
 
Coyote Shadow Tracker said:
Don't know if these Armadillos are considered "Varmints" or "Pests".
We have them all over in this part of GA and our YARD.
Probably shot 3 dozen over the past years around 3-4 AM. I would be going on a business trip and leaving early and these suckers would be running around when I would turn on the outside lights and go to my vehicle. I would sometimes shoot them with my CCW. The next day (or at the time) I would have a neighbors from 1/3 mile away call and say "Len are you shooting Yotes or hogs in your yard in the middle of the night" or you OK. Seems like someone always knows who is shooting or shots fired. We had some home invasions about 5-6 miles away and we had an incident here so everyone checks on everyone.
Been seeing the yard all dug up lately. Jill was just outside and several of these buggers scared her when she was going to the Garbage can. Well you know the rest. Jill yelled at me to get rid of them. I grabbed the 223 SBR with light & Laser and went out. Saw two next to a big brush pile. Shot one flipped him up and then shot the second going into the brush pile. Will go out tomorrow and see if there is carcasses before the Yotes get them. Don't want to walk around in the woods at this time of the night.-
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Armadillos are carriers of leprosy. Best to not handle them at all. If you must, I'd suggest medical gloves. Their blood is the vector to humans.
 
Yep, was fun to catch 'em by the tail, hang on, lol... They're not nearly as many around as there used to be, suits me fine..
 
Being in northeast georgia. I never saw a armadillo here until about 20 years ago. Driving a truck locally, they were in central georgia when i first started driving, around 1995. They have steadly moved north, with the fire ant population in the lead. Supposedly they are a enemy to the fire ants......one thing i know. They will tunnel under and undermine foundations to barns and homes. I kill everyone i see. In my eyes they are vermin. And disease carriers, so they must go. Seems like everything is moving north gradually. I have seen and killed several cottonmouths on lake oconee, in past years. So are the timber rattlers. Never saw one of them in madison county until last year. 2 showed up dead on facebook within a week of each other. Copperheads yes, rattlers no.
 
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They are pests, destructive and disease vectors. Armadillos, or as they were called when I lived in the South, "Possum on the Half Shell", were most hated around homes, farms, gardens and flower beds. During bow season, they will get one's heart racing thinking a deer is coming your way, but to only discover it was Possum on the Half Shell nosing through the leaves. More than a few arrows were shot at an into these pests.

I spent quite a few warm summer and early fall nights using a 22 rifle and a Maglite strapped to the forearm and hunting these around small farms, gardens, large yards, etc. Many began moving at dusk, so most of our hunts would end by midnight, but sometimes, we began before dawn. Lots of fun, and the local rural folks were very welcoming.
 
Armadillos are not native to North America. They are a non-indigenous invasive species. Such invaders normally do more damage than good in the places where they are not supposed to live.
 
They are the main reason I have been looking at thermal scopes. They may be hard of hearing and not the fastest thing in woods, but they can jump higher than you think. I took a moving shot with the 22 the other evening and caught the armadillo about midway back and it jumped 4 feet in the air and scampered into the thick stuff. Buzzards found it the next day.
 
Heavyiron said:
Being in northeast georgia. I never saw a armadillo here until about 20 years ago. Driving a truck locally, they were in central georgia when i first started driving, around 1995. They have steadly moved north, with the fire ant population in the lead. Supposedly they are a enemy to the fire ants......one thing i know. They will tunnel under and undermine foundations to barns and homes. I kill everyone i see. In my eyes they are vermin. And disease carriers, so they must go. Seems like everything is moving north gradually. I have seen and killed several cottonmouths on lake oconee, in past years. So are the timber rattlers.
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Timber Rattlers are wide-spread across the eastern third of the nation.

I've never seen an armadillo disturb a fire ant bed. They both invaded SEGA in the early/mid 70's, but I don't think their range expansion was dependent on spread of the FA. I remember as a kid, the State/Feds dropping Mirex from planes to eliminate fire ants. Sadly, it was a huge failure. I also remember being able to pick up Mirex from the County Extension Service...they would give you all you wanted.
 

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