Armadillo migration documented in Ohio for the first time

Researchers have documented the first formal instance of an armadillo migrating to Ohio. A male armadillo, presumed to have been killed by a vehicle, was found on September 6 near Oxford, Ohio, close to the Indiana border.

Tereza Jezkova, an associate professor of biology at Miami University in Ohio, noted that armadillos, which are typically associated with warmer, drier climates like Texas, have been steadily moving north over the last century. This migration pattern often sees the species appear in a new U.S. state approximately every twelve years, following their arrival in southern Illinois in 2017.

The specimen has been taken by Miami University and is expected to be sent to the Hefner Natural History Museum on campus. Scientists remain uncertain how the animals are adapting to endure harsher northern winters as they continue their northward expansion.