A live cage trap placed near an active burrow, with guide boards funneling the armadillo inside, is the most effective setup for catching a nuisance armadillo. Bait is unnecessary. University of Georgia research found armadillos were just as likely to enter an unbaited trap as a baited one, making placement and funneling the two factors that actually matter.
Choosing the Right Trap
You need a wire cage live trap or a wooden box trap large enough for a nine-banded armadillo to walk into comfortably. The minimum recommended size is 10 inches wide by 10 inches tall by 36 inches long. Researchers at the University of Georgia used Tomahawk-brand wire cage traps measuring 10 by 12 by 32 inches with success, though wooden box traps appear to be the preferred choice among wildlife professionals because they feel more enclosed and natural.
Single-door traps work well when you can position the open end directly facing a burrow entrance, catching the armadillo as it exits to forage. Two-door traps are more versatile for placement along travel paths where the animal could approach from either direction.
Why Bait Doesn’t Work
Armadillos forage by rooting through soil with their snouts, relying on smell and touch to find insects and grubs underground. They don’t respond to food sitting inside a cage the way raccoons or opossums do. Controlled testing by the University of Georgia confirmed this directly: the use of baits and attractants did not increase trap success. Armadillos entered baited and unbaited traps at the same rate.
Skip the worms, overripe fruit, or commercial lures you might see recommended online. Your time is better spent on placement and guide boards.
Guide Boards Make the Difference
Armadillos travel along edges. They follow fence lines, building walls, fallen logs, and landscape borders. They don’t navigate open spaces toward a target the way a scavenging animal would. This means you need to physically guide them into the trap opening.
The most effective method is attaching “wings” to the trap entrance: two boards (2-by-6-inch lumber, about 6 feet long each) arranged in a V-shape that narrows toward the trap door. An armadillo walking along its usual path hits the wide end of the V and gets funneled straight inside. You can also use temporary fencing, plywood scraps, or even stacked bricks to create the same funnel effect. The key is eliminating any route around the trap so the animal’s only option is through it.
Where to Place the Trap
Location is everything. Place your trap in one of these spots, ranked roughly by effectiveness:
- Directly in front of a burrow entrance. This is the highest-success option. Position a single-door trap with the opening facing the burrow so the armadillo walks in as it leaves to forage.
- Along a fence line or wall near the burrow. If you can’t block the burrow entrance itself, set up a few feet away along whatever edge the animal follows when it leaves.
- On a well-traveled path. Look for recessed grass, small tracks, or a visible trail of disturbed soil connecting the burrow to foraging areas.
- Near landscape features or building edges. Patios, garden borders, and fallen trees all serve as natural travel guides.
If you can’t find the burrow, place the trap along a fence or wall near the worst damage in your yard. Armadillos are creatures of habit and will return to productive foraging spots.
Timing and Activity Patterns
Set your trap in the late afternoon or early evening during summer months, when armadillos shift their foraging to cooler nighttime hours. In winter, they flip their schedule and tend to be active during the warmest part of the day, so a morning setup works better. Seasonal behavior differences are significant: armadillos spend about 65% of their time in burrows during winter, compared to only 29% in summer. You’ll have more trapping opportunities in warmer months simply because the animals are out and moving more.
Check the trap at least once every morning. A trapped armadillo left in the sun or without water can overheat quickly, especially in southern climates.
Handling a Trapped Armadillo Safely
Nine-banded armadillos can carry the bacterium that causes leprosy (Hansen’s disease). Transmission to humans has been documented in Texas, Louisiana, and Florida. The actual risk from brief handling is low, but you should wear thick gloves any time you touch the trap or the animal. Avoid direct skin contact entirely.
Armadillos in a cage trap will often jump and thrash. Draping a towel or tarp over the trap calms them and makes transport easier. Carry the trap by its handle, keeping it away from your body.
What to Do After the Catch
Laws on what you can do with a trapped armadillo vary by state, and some are stricter than you might expect. In Florida, for example, any nuisance animal caught in a trap must be humanely killed or released on the same property where it was caught. You cannot relocate it to a park, woods, or someone else’s land. Transporting the animal off-property is only legal if you’re taking it to be euthanized. Other states have their own rules, and some don’t classify armadillos as game animals at all, which changes what methods are permitted.
Before you set a trap, check your state wildlife agency’s regulations on nuisance wildlife. Firearms may be an option where local ordinances allow discharge, but using artificial lights to assist with shooting is illegal in many jurisdictions.
Preventing Armadillos From Coming Back
Trapping removes the individual animal, but if your yard is attractive to armadillos, another one will eventually move in. A few changes reduce the appeal:
- Water and fertilize sparingly. Lush, moist lawns are packed with grubs and earthworms, which are an armadillo’s primary food source.
- Remove fallen fruit. Armadillos shift their diet toward fruit in summer and fall, so ripe fruit on the ground draws them in.
- Install exclusion fencing. A fence at least 2 feet high and buried 18 inches deep around garden beds or sensitive areas will block digging access. Standard chicken wire or welded wire mesh works, as long as the buried portion angles outward to discourage tunneling underneath.
Combining trapping with habitat modification gives you the best long-term results. Removing one armadillo while keeping a grub-rich, fruit-laden yard is an invitation for the next one.