Southern Naked-Tailed Armadillo
VU

Southern Naked-Tailed Armadillo

Cabassous unicinctus

Unknown

Photo: Wikimedia Commons (CC) via https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_naked-tailed_armadillo

Overview

A detailed profile for this species is sourced from the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species as assessments become available.

The Southern Naked-Tailed Armadillo faces severe population declines primarily due to extensive habitat conversion for cattle ranching and agricultural expansion across the Cerrado and Atlantic Forest regions. Hunting pressure for subsistence food and traditional medicine compounds these threats, while road mortality increasingly fragments remaining populations. Climate change is altering precipitation patterns in its already restricted range, affecting the soil invertebrate communities that form its primary food source.

Threat summary

Habitat

This armadillo inhabits open grasslands, woodland savannas, and forest edges across the Cerrado and Atlantic Forest biomes of South America. It prefers areas with loose, sandy soils that facilitate its specialized burrowing behavior and foraging for ants, termites, and other soil invertebrates.

Other threatened species in Dasypodidae

Northern Naked-tailed ArmadilloVU

Northern Naked-tailed Armadillo

Cabassous centralis

Unknown
Northern Long-nosed ArmadilloVU

Northern Long-nosed Armadillo

Dasypus sabanicola

Unknown

Frequently asked questions

Why is Southern Naked-Tailed Armadillo classified as Vulnerable?
Southern Naked-Tailed Armadillo is classified as Vulnerable because the population is declining and the species faces a high risk of extinction in the medium-term future if current pressures continue. The Southern Naked-Tailed Armadillo faces severe population declines primarily due to extensive habitat conversion for cattle ranching and agricultural expansion across the Cerrado and Atlantic Forest regions. Hunting pressure for subsistence food and traditional medicine compounds these threats, while road mortality increasingly fragments remaining populations. Climate change is altering precipitation patterns in its already restricted range, affecting the soil invertebrate communities that form its primary food source.
Where does Southern Naked-Tailed Armadillo live?
Southern Naked-Tailed Armadillo occurs in across multiple regions. Country-level distribution data is sourced from the IUCN Red List and cross-referenced with GBIF occurrences.
What are the main threats to Southern Naked-Tailed Armadillo?
The main threats to Southern Naked-Tailed Armadillo are ai-1, ai-2, ai-3, and ai-4. The full IUCN-classified threat record for this species is detailed on the species page.

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