TACOMA, Wash. — Right in the middle of nap time at Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium, there’s a gentle wake-up call for a five-week-old pup.
“When she's sleeping it's a lot easier to weigh her,” says Maureen O’Keefe. “I'd say she's like baseball size. When she was born she was more like a ping-pong ball size.”
She is a Southern three banded armadillo. The first healthy one ever born here.
“It's amazing how fast she's growing,” says O’Keefe.
She’s the result of an armadillo breeding program helping this species survive destruction to its South American habitat.
Her father's name is Scooter.
“Scooter is 19 years old and he is a first-time dad,” says zoo vet Karen Wolf.
Her mother's name is Vespa.
“So we've decided to name this little pup Segway,” says O’Keefe. “Kind of thought we'd keep all the modes of transportation in the family there.”
Segway already shares a special talent with her parents. The flexibility to instantly curl up into a ball.
“Their tail and head fit tight together like a little puzzle and protects them,” says O’Keefe. “They feel very secure when they are in a ball but they also sleep like this too.”
“That’s one of the things that makes it so challenging to examine these animals,” says Wolf, “because if they don't want the vet to look at them they're just going to fold themselves up.”
Segway knows she's among friends and a little tickle draws her out of her ball. She will nurse with her mother for two and a half months. Then this tiny tank becomes a termite eating machine ready to make her mark on the world.
“Pretty amazing little critter,” says O’Keefe.
Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium is located at the end of North Pearl Street inside Point Defiance Park.
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