Armadillo Antics

By Linda Wylie BearDen

Austin, Bo, Charley, and Danny are newborn armadillos who live in the Texas Hill Country under a spacious oak tree they share with Mr. Oliver, a great horned owl who helps their mother watch over them when they are not sleeping. But as Mr. Oliver and Mother Armadillo already know, keeping the four little boys safe from all the dangers in their environment is not an easy task.

As the boys skin hardens into shells, they slowly begin to emerge from their den. With help from their mother who teaches them where to find delicious food like ants, termites, spiders, and worms, Austin, Bo, Charley, and Danny begin exploring the perilous world around them. While Mother Armadillo guides the boys to recognize their predators and survive each threat, her biggest fear is that they will become a hillbilly bump in the road. Now only time will tell if they can survive their frightening encounters and become the armadillos she has always dreamed they could be.

Armadillo Antics is the charming and educational tale of four armadillos on a coming-of-age journey as they learn to find food, protect themselves from predators, and interact with others of their kind.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Archway Publishing
• Release date: Jul 9, 2015
• ISBN: 9781480818040

Linda Wylie BearDen

Linda Wylie BearDen was born in the Ozark Mountains of Arkansas. After graduating from Oklahoma State University, she moved to Texas and then Carbondale, Colorado, where she founded a company specializing in selling farms and ranches and managing investment properties. Armadillo Antics is her second book. To view more on Linda’s first book, Grandpa Bud, visit her website at Linda Wylie.com. Sami Gaston is an illustrator and designer in Portland, Oregon. To view more of her work, visit samigaston.com.

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Copyright © 2015 Linda Wylie BearDen.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Archway Publishing

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Bloomington, IN 47403

www.archwaypublishing.com

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

ISBN: 978-1-4808-1806-4 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4808-1805-7 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4808-1804-0 (e)

Archway Publishing rev. date: 07/07/2015

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For my son, Jeffrey Wylie and his daughter, Miel

CONTENTS

Chapter 1 The Quads Are Born

Chapter 2 Are We Weird?

Chapter 3 Safety First

Chapter 4 Armadillo Candy

Chapter 5 A Close Call

Chapter 6 Swimming Lessons

Chapter 7 A Texas Tornado

Chapter 8 A Day Without Armor

Chapter 9 Fire Ants & Danger

Chapter 10 Bright Lights at Night

Chapter 11 A Moonlight Meeting

Chapter 12 Preparing for the Future

Chapter 13 A New Adventure

Armadillo Antics – Interesting Facts

About the Author

CHAPTER 1

The Quads Are Born

It was finally a warm spring evening on the Bar W Ranch in the Texas Hill Country. Mr. Oliver, the owl, was just waking up when Mother Armadillo scurried out the main entrance of her burrow to grab a quick meal.

Mr. Oliver, the great horned owl, had lived for years in a spacious live-oak tree above Mother Armadillo’s cozy den. He knew all about Texas nine-banded armadillos.

Whoo-hoo! Whoo-hoo! Are your babies boys or girls this time? he asked.

They’re all boys! she answered.

Always four, said Mr. Oliver, and always all boys or all girls. Keeping four curious boys safe from dangers will be a challenge.

Don’t I know it! said Mother Armadillo.

All of a sudden they heard guns firing near the cattle barn. The people who live in the ranch house were setting cans on top of fence posts and shooting at them with guns. Boom! Boom! Boom! Ping-ping-ping!

Target Practice! said Mr. Oliver. Thankfully most Texans don’t eat armadillos or owls.

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True, said Mom, but they get upset when we armadillos dig holes in their yard or eat food from their organic farms. She sighed. The dangers for the boys are everywhere.

Mr. Oliver agreed. Have you named them yet? When will they be out of the den?"

Mother Armadillo held up her front leg and extended each of her four long claws as she proudly announced: "Austin was born first. Bo was next. Then Charley. And finally, little Danny. You can