The burrow of Dasypus hybridus (Cingulata : Dasypodidae)

Dasypus hybridus (Desmarest, 1804) inhabits open fields in southern South A merica. Burrows of D. hybridus were cylindrical with a conical end. They ha d an entrance and a single tunnel without branches. Three locations of the burrows in the terrain were detected: in banks of dried waterways, near roc ks, and in open field. The orientation of 29 burrow mouths was not random a nd, although they did not point to ally cardinal point, in particular there was a strong tendency to avoid the south quadrant. In a sample area of 90 x 140 m, burrow mouths were arranged in a random spatial pattern with a den sity of 25.4 burrows per ha. Great variation in burrow length was found (11 8.8 +/- 105.69 cm, CV = 89.0%). Tunnels may be used as refuges and/or for t hermoregulation. The orientation of burrow mouths can also be related to th ermoregulation as tunnels are covered from dominant winds, and, for many ho urs every day, the temperature at the mouths can be influenced by insolatio n. The possible existence of shelter-burrows and resting-burrows is discuss ed.