Baby three-banded armadillo born at the Minnesota Zoo

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We’re of the impression -- under normal circumstances -- that all baby animals are cute.

Then there’s the baby three-banded armadillo.

This little creature was born Feb. 19 at the Minnesota Zoo; it was about the size of a golf ball at birth and weighed in at 4.6 ounces during a recent exam, according to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. It’s thought to be a male and zoo staff believe it’s the third three-banded armadillo born in a U.S. zoo this year.

There are about 20 species of armadillo, which are relatives of anteaters and sloths. Some of those species are distinguished by the number of bands on their leathery shells; the type most recognizable to Americans is the nine-banded variety, a common sighting in many Southern states.

Three-banded armadillos are native to South America and have the distinction of being the only armadillo species that can completely encase themselves in their shells when they curl up into a ball.

--Lindsay Barnett