ARE ROAD KILLS VALID INDICATORS OF ARMADILLO POPULATION-STRUCTURE

We collected 3 yr of data on road-killed nine-banded armadillos (Dasyp us novemcinctus) to determine if these individuals were representative of the population as a whole. Comparisons between road kills and an a djacent live-caught population revealed no differences in sex ratios o r the reproductive condition of adult females. However, there tvas a s ignificant difference in the age structure of the two groups, with alm ost no juvenile road kills. Our live-caught population appeared repres entative of armadillo populations in general. Comparisons of the demog raphy of this population with that from two other live-caught groups r evealed no significant differences. Our data suggest that road-killed armadillos provide a representative picture of the demography of the a dults in a population, but that information on age structure is mislea ding.