One professor outlined the reasons why the armadillo, an animal that has historically thrived in the Southwest, has been "puzzled" by scientists.
The warmer weather that draws armadillos to the region has contributed to its prevalence throughout the southern United States.
However, recently, these warm-weather animals have begun settling in the Midwest, where they can be found even in the winter.
According to 101 Highland Lakes, Nine-Banded Armadillos have historically thrived in the Southwest, with Texas having the largest population in the nation.
But the armadillo is being seen more frequently thousands of miles further north.
In recent years, armadillos have been making their way up rivers and streams to the Midwest. Thousands of them are now regularly spotted as far north as Iowa, Nebraska, and Illinois.
They were surprised to discover the armadillos this far north in the winter, and Dr. Agustin Jiménez, an associate professor of biological sciences at Southern Illinois University, expressed their surprise.
Two weeks after an Illinois couple sent AccuWeather a video of an armadillo in their backyard during the winter, another armadillo was spotted there.
Although the precise cause of these animals' northward migration remains unknown, numerous studies have linked it to warming winters and climate change.
Jiménez pointed out that usually, the winters that we would expect for this area, the temperatures, would have taken care of them.
In these circumstances, they couldn't survive, but they are.
Tracking and Understanding
According to a study in the Wiley Journal of Biogeography, armadillos may eventually be able to survive as far north as Pennsylvania as a result of milder winters.
According to Colleen McDonough, an ecologist and armadillo expert at Georgia's Valdosta State University, armadillos might now be found in places they weren't expected to be 20 years ago because of the warmer temperatures being found further north.
To better understand why armadillos are migrating north, Jiménez's students recently fitted trackers to some of the animals they discovered in southern Illinois.
The findings revealed that the armadillos are remaining close to home and that more may be seen in southern Illinois.
Jiménez said he doesn't know if it could be difficult for them to reach the larva, the insects they feed on because the southern part of Illinois experiences a milder winter than other regions of the state.
They currently have easier access to some of these insects due to the winters and ground conditions in southern Illinois, AccuWeather reported.
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Armadillo Sightings
The Illinois Department of Natural Resources requested sighting reports from the general public in February.
According to the Chicago Tribune, more than 400 reports were made in just 24 hours, mostly from the state's southern region.
However, armadillos have been spotted in northern and even central Illinois. An armadillo was discovered decomposing behind a Kia dealership in Springfield, Illinois, in the summer of 2021.
Outside of the Midwest, armadillos have also been spotted, including in Virginia and North Carolina, where authorities are requesting that people report any sightings they may have there.
Officials can better monitor and comprehend the animals' new, larger ranges by reporting sightings.
Armadillos have been steadily moving further north over the past century. The Rio Grande River was the first place these animals crossed, followed by the Mississippi River in the 1930s.
According to the National Geographic, armadillos started showing up in Tennessee, North Carolina, and Virginia by the 1990s.
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