DeGregorio, B.A. and A. Deshwal. Accepted. Current distribution of the Nine-banded Armadillo (Dasypus novemcinctus) in the United States. Diversity. 17, 138 https://doi.org/10.3390/d17020138
Abstract
The nine banded armadillo (Dasypus novemcinctus: hereafter armadillo) was first recorded in Texas in 1849 and has been expanding its range northward and eastward since then. With the widespread adoption of citizen science as well as the proliferation of nationwide wildlife game camera studies, occurrence data armadillos can be compiled more rapidly and thoroughly than anytime in the past. Here we use disparate data sources to update the current geographic distribution of the armadillo in the United States and use occurrence data from the leading edge of their range expansion to create a species distribution model to understand their relationship with landscape and bioclimatic factors. Since the last report on the geographic distribution of the armadillo in 2014, we show that armadillos have expanded to cover the entirety of Missouri and established in southern Iowa, expanded modestly within Kansas and Illinois, expanded northward and eastward in Indiana, expanded eastward in both Kentucky and Tennessee, established throughout the entirety of South Carolina and Georgia and established in the western third of North Carolina. Our species distribution model indicates that there is substantial opportunity for the species to continue to expand its geographic range, particularly in the eastern U.S. These results should provide information to managers that are now or might soon be co-existing with the armadillo to proactively manage the species or inform the public regarding potential conflicts.