Armadillos cross streams by walking underwater. The mammals are able to hold their breath for around six minutes, which allows them to simply use their claws to grip and walk across the bottom of streams.
Although armadillos are covered with a distinctive heavy armor of bony plates, they are proficient swimmers. For deeper bodies of water, armadillos are able to easily swim and travel through the water due to their ability to inflate their stomachs intestines when they take deep breaths, which lightens their load and helps them float through the water.
More about armadillos:
- Contrary to popular belief, armadillos don’t curl up into a ball when scared – they actually jump straight up in the air and reach heights up to four feet (1.22 m).
- The female nine-banded armadillo, the only type of armadillo found in the US, always gives birth to four identical babies of the same gender from one egg.
- Only one type of armadillo, the three-banded armadillo, has the ability to curl itself up into its shell to protect itself from predators.
