North Carolina’s newest residents: Armadillos?
NORTH CAROLINA (WTVD) — Some unexpected visitors are making North Carolina their new home and the NC Wildlife Commission wants the public to be on the lookout.
Armadillos were first spotted in the state in 2008 in Cherokee County.
“Since then, we’ve gotten 126 observations of which we’ve confirmed armadillos are in 26 counties but we’ve gotten reports from 47 counties total,” said Colleen Olfenbuttel, biologist for the N.C. Wildlife Commission.
Olfenbuttel says recent mild winters are behind the migration from states with warmer climates.
“It’s a reflection of our more mild winters,” she said. “It used to be we would have below freezing temperatures maybe for two, three, four weeks. Now, if we have below freezing conditions it may be just a few days and because of that, armadillos are able to survive those conditions and expand their range into N.C.”
To learn more about the mammals and any impact they are having on the state, experts have started the NC Armadillo Project and are asking the public to report sightings with photos and GPS coordinates if possible. You can also email armadilo@ncwildlife.org.
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