Scientists have discovered that pink fairy armadillos, the smallest armadillo species, have a distinct second layer of skin.
Double Skin of Pink Fairy Armadillos
As part of the new study "The double skin of pink fairy armadillo, the peculiar integumentary system of Chlamyphorus truncatus Cingulata (Mammalia, Xenarthra)," researchers examined the microscopic anatomy of some skin sections of the pink fairy armadillo, or Chlamyphorus truncatus. They read the sections with and without osteoderms, bony plates embedded over their skin. Doing so enabled them to discover a distinct second layer of skin beneath the animal's dorsal shield.
Biologist Cecilia Krmpotic, the study's lead author from the Argentine National Scientific and Technical Research Council, explains that the animal strangely possesses a second skin layer.
Its outermost skin layer contains cornified scales and osteoderms. This layer is a covering or mantle over the internal layer, displaying rich, fine white fur. This second skin feature is a distinct one among mammals.
This feature contrasts with 19 other known armadillo species, which have a single skin layer on their backs covered with osteoderms and scales that form the animal's armor.
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Pink Fairy Armadillos
Pink fairy armadillos are the world's smallest armadillos, spanning just 15 centimeters in length and 100 grams in weight. They are natives of central Argentina. In this area, these creatures dwell in burrows excavated by their proportionally large claws.
Researchers believe that armadillos mostly eat ants and other insects. However, their habits lack understanding. The majority of captive specimens have also ended up perishing in days.
A pink fairy armadillo's protective armor is usually divided into two zones. One zone covers its heads, while the dorsal shield coats its body. Its dorsal shield is further divided into the pectoral buckler, which covers its upper back and consists of moveable bands that allow the animal to stay flexible, and the pelvic buckler, which covers its posterior region.
The armor helps protect the animal against possible predators and also helps support the underground lifestyle of the armadillo.
Though larger armadillo relatives spend most of their time at the surface, pink fairy armadillos mostly live underground. Krmpotic explains that this subterranean lifestyle evolution in the ancestral lineage of the animals may have started roughly 17 to 32 million years ago. This change was prompted by changes in environmental conditions that resulted in more arid ecosystems within southern South America.
The structure of the epidermis of pink fairy armadillos is similar to juveniles of other relative species. The distinct external characteristics may have been an adaptation to a lifestyle that involves sandy soil digging. Krmpotic explains that the dorsal shield's lightness and flexibility allow it to adapt to tunnel shape.
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