SAZU, THE ARMADILLO!!! OH BOY!!!!

SAZU IS AN ARMADILLO. ARMADILLOS ARE AN AMAZING GROUP OF ANIMALS THAT ORIGINATED IN SOUTH AMERICA. ARMADILLOS ARE MAMMALS, JUST LIKE YOU (MAYBE). THE ARMADILLO IS NEITHER A RODENT NOR A MARSUPIAL, AND WE ARE NOT RELATED TO THE OPOSSUM. THERE ARE TWENTY DIFFERENT SPECIES OF ARMADILLOS. WE BELONG TO THE ORDER XENARTHRA, FAMILY DASYPODIDAE. OUR CLOSEST RELATIVES ARE SLOTHS AND ANTEATERS. THE MOST EASILY RECOGNIZED FEATURE OF AN ARMADILLO IS OUR SHELL. ALL OF US ARMADILLOS HAVE SHELLS, MADE OF TRUE BONE, THAT COVER OUR BACKS. MOST ARMADILLOS ALSO HAVE BONY RINGS OR PLATES THAT PROTECT OUR TAILS. BECAUSE OUR BACKS ARE COVERED WITH BONE, WE ARMADILLOS ARE NOT VERY FLEXIBLE. ALTHOUGH ONE SPECIES — THE THREE-BANDED ARMADILLO — CAN ROLL ITSELF INTO A BALL, NONE OF THE OTHERS CAN DO SO. ARMADILLOS ARE BUILT TO DIG. WE HAVE SHORT, STRONG LEGS THAT ARE WELL SUITED TO RAPID DIGGING, EITHER FOR FOOD OR FOR SHELTER. LIKE OUR COUSINS, THE SLOTH AND ANTEATER, ARMADILLOS HAVE STRONG CLAWS. WE USE THEM TO HELP IN DIGGING, OR TO TEAR APART ROTTING WOOD TO FIND FOOD. WE ARMADILLOS EAT A WIDE VARIETY OF DIFFERENT FOODS, RANGING FROM INSECTS TO PLANTS. MOST ARMADILLOS EAT SMALL INVERTEBRATES LIKE ANTS, BEETLES, AND GRUBS. MANY OF THEM ALSO EAT BITS OF FLESH FROM DEAD ANIMALS WHEN WE CAN FIND THEM. MOST ARMADILLOS ALSO EAT PLANTS. BECAUSE SMALL BUGS AND SOFT PLANTS ARE NOT TOO DIFFICULT TO CHEW, ARMADILLOS DO NOT HAVE VERY COMPLICATED TEETH. WE HAVE LOST ALL BUT OUR MOLARS OVER TIME, AND THE TEETH THAT REMAIN ARE PEG-SHAPED. ARMADILLO TEETH DO NOT HAVE THE HARD WHITE ENAMEL COATING THAT PROTECTS THE TEETH OF OTHER MAMMALS. MANY SPECIES OF ARMADILLO ARE ENDANGERED OR THREATENED. HUMAN ENCROACHMENT, SLASH-AND-BURN FARMING, HUNTING, AND DEATHS DUE TO DOMESTIC DOGS ACCOUNT FOR A LARGE PERCENTAGE OF THE PROBLEM. OF THE TWENTY SPECIES OF ARMADILLO, ONLY ONE — THE NINE-BANDED ARMADILLO — APPEARS TO BE INCREASING IN NUMBER. IN THE LAST HUNDRED YEARS OR SO, THE NINE-BANDED ARMADILLO HAS EXPANDED ITS HOME RANGE NORTHWARD INTO THE UNITED STATES. ARMADILLOS HAVE MOVED AS FAR WEST AS COLORADO AND AS FAR NORTH AS NEBRASKA, WITH OCCASIONAL SIGHTINGS EVEN FARTHER NORTH. COLD WEATHER WILL EVENTUALLY STOP THE SPREAD OF THE ARMADILLO, AS WE CANNOT TOLERATE EVEN RELATIVELY SHORT PERIODS OF EXTREME COLD. — WE DO NOT HAVE LARGE FAT RESERVES TO HELP INSULATE THEIR BODIES. OH YEAH, DID SAZU MENTION THAT SAZU IS AN ARMADILLO? ALSO, AND LISTEN UP M#$@#$ F#@$@#S, THE SWEET LITTLE THING THAT FEEDS SAZU IS ONLY TEN YEARS OLD. KEEP IT SOMEWHAT CLEAN ON HERE!!!! NAKED PICTURES ARE NOT NEEDED. SAZU IS TRYING TO CLEAN SAZU' LANGUAGE. OTHERWISE SAZU HAS TO MEET MR. SOAP. THE "ENCHANTRESS" THAT HOUSES SAZU IS ACTUALLY THE ONE WHO MAINTAINS SAZU'S PAGE. SO ALTHOUGH SAZU IS MALE, IT IS A GIRL WHO HELPS SAZU. WHAT DO YOU WANT? SAZU IS ARMADILLO!!!