i am so excited. i've been in central TX for almost 10 years.. and have yet to see the state mascot, and source of so much pride.. the amazing armadillo. i've seen tons of dead on the side of the road, which is a sad state of affairs due to careless overdevelopment. and it seems that everyone like the "idea" of armadillos, but doesn't like them in reality, because they mess up their gardens and landscaping. well, i realize landscaping costs a lot of money and it's discouraging when that happens. however, we moved into THEIR territory and basically took over- and they don't much much space left... they are one of the unique things about being here. on top of that, fire ants really decimated the population... so it's a miracle they haven't gone extinct yet. and if they do, just like humans always do... we will say "oh weren't they wonderful animals.. too bad they're gone. maybe we should have done something."

at any rate... my neighbor saw a HUGE one in our driveway last night.. i missed it, but apparently he was enormous, and lo and behold i saw evidence of it this morning when i woke up, in our backyard. i've never seen this before, but one patch of several feather grass clumps was all dug up & in a state of disarray, as well as some other plants. and strangely, in the same area, a potted plant was moved about a foot away, without tipping over. and i saw certain spots there & elsewhere in the yard that had distinct cone-shaped holes.. which i figure is from the dillo sticking its long nose in the dirt & leaves. as far as i'm concerned, that dillo can dig up whatever it wants to. those flowers & plants are replacable, but 'dillos are not! and i have plenty of plants in pots anyway. they are such amazing and fascinating creatures, and i hope i can catch a glimpse of this one.. or see a live one somewhere someday.

any tips for attracting them & keeping them around are welcome. i do have plenty of fertile soil with plenty of bugs, so i guess that's a start.