Why did the armadillo cross the road? Climate change

Before 2000, armadillos in Kansas were a rare sight. The beasts don't hibernate. The production of the warm-weather crop cotton is also on the rise.

By

State News

April 23, 2019 - 10:06 AM

A cotton gin at NextGineration in Pratt is almost always running lately as it tries to keep up with higher than usual demand. KCUR/BRIAN GRIMMETT

Drive on any major highway in Kansas and you’ll likely see some roadkill.

For decades, biologists at the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism have found a treasure trove in their counts of flattened animals. It’s a way to create a population index of raccoons and beavers.

In 1986, the scientists also started counting armadillos.

“The first year, the total number of armadillo reports, actually the first couple of years, it was two — total,” state furbearer biologist Matt Peek said.

While armadillos have been spotted in Kansas as early as the 1940s, they were rare.

That all changed in mid-2000. Climate change is a likely part of the explanation.

The effects of climate change appear all over the world. As average temperatures rise and droughts drag on longer in Kansas, plants, animals, and even humans are beginning to adapt.

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