# Giant armadillo (*Priodontes maximus*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/giant-armadillo  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The giant armadillo (Priodontes maximus) is a mammal in the family Chlamyphoridae, order Cingulata, and subfamily Tolypeutinae. It is a large, terrestrial, nocturnal invertivore with an adult body mass of 45.4 kg and a carnivore trophic level. Gestation lasts 122 days, litters have 1.5 young as a representative value, and sexual maturity comes at 320 days. The IUCN Red List lists it as Vulnerable (VU), a threatened category, and its lifespan is 14 years, with a highest reported value of 15 years.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 45.4 kg |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Lifespan | 14 years |
| Diet | Invertivore |
| Longest recorded lifespan | 15 years |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | Not recorded |
| Gestation | 122 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 1 – 1.5 |
| Age at maturity | 10.5 months |
| Active | At night (nocturnal) |
| Lifestyle | Terrestrial |
| Conservation status | Vulnerable (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Mammalia
- order: Cingulata
- family: Chlamyphoridae
- genus: Priodontes
- species: *Priodontes maximus* (Kerr, 1792)

Synonyms: *Cheloniscus gigas*, *Dasypus giganteus*, *Dasypus gigas*, *Dasypus maximus*, *Priodon gigas*, *Priodon maximus*, *Priodontes giganteus*, *Priodontes giganteus*, *Priodontes gigas*, *Prionodon gigas*, *Prionodontes gigas*, *Prionodos gigas*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the giant armadillo?

The giant armadillo is a mammal in the family Chlamyphoridae and order Cingulata. It is a large, terrestrial species.

### How heavy is the giant armadillo?

The giant armadillo has an adult body mass of 45.4 kg, which places it in the large size class.

### What does the giant armadillo eat?

The giant armadillo is an invertivore, with a carnivore trophic level.

### Is the giant armadillo endangered?

The giant armadillo is listed as Vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List, which is a threatened category.

### How long does the giant armadillo live?

The giant armadillo has a lifespan of 14 years, and the highest value reported by our sources is 15 years.

### How many young does the giant armadillo have?

The giant armadillo has 1.5 young per litter as a representative value, with a lowest reported value of 1, after a gestation of 122 days.

### Is the giant armadillo nocturnal?

Yes, the giant armadillo is nocturnal.

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [EltonTraits 1.0: species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1), CC0 1.0, 1.0. Wilman, H., Belmaker, J., Simpson, J., de la Rosa, C., Rivadeneira, M.M. & Jetz, W. (2014) EltonTraits 1.0: Species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals. Ecology 95: 2027. https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Giant armadillo (Priodontes maximus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/giant-armadillo