Armadillo lizards are mind-blowing creatures that you can keep at home. They are named after the Armadillo as they curl up and bite their tails for protecting themselves from predators. They are among the cutest and unique reptiles that you can keep as a pet even for beginner hobbyists.
As a responsible hobbyist, you may be wondering what is the best diet for your lizards to keep them healthy and happy.
Armadillo lizards are omnivorous animals and they feed mainly on small invertebrates like spiders and insects.
However, they are commonly fed with crickets in captivity.
In this article, we will highlight everything that you need to know about the armadillo lizard diet from what you can feed them in captivity to how often you can feed them.
Contents
Armadillo lizard Diet: What Do Armadillo Lizards Eat?
Armadillo lizards are actually omnivorous animals. This shows that they can feed on both small invertebrates and plant-based food. Furthermore, armadillo lizards are a sit-and-wait predator in the wild and they mostly feed on termites.
They can also feed on insects like crickets, millipedes, and spiders in the wild. Although armadillo lizards are omnivorous animals, juvenile armadillo lizards will only feed on a 100% insect-based diet both in the wild and in captivity.
In captivity, you can feed your armadillo lizards with crickets. However, you need to gut load and dust the crickets with calcium and mineral supplement before you offer your lizard. You can easily get crickets from the wild or from a commercial pet store to feed your lizard.
Some of the other food that you can use to feed your armadillo lizards in captivity are butter worms, super worms, pinky mice, etc.
You need to ensure that your armadillo lizards always have access to fresh water. You can use a low flat dish to offer your lizard some water. This is because armadillo lizards can drown in a high-rimmed bowl if they get stuck in the dish.
What Fruits Can Armadillo Lizards Eat?
The fruit is among the natural diet of armadillo lizards. However, juvenile armadillo lizards feed mainly on insects and it is only adult armadillo lizards that you can feed with fruits. Some of the fruits that you can feed adult armadillo lizards are stated below.
- Mango
- Pear
- Banana
- Grape
- Fig
- Apricot
- Strawberry
- Watermelon
- Dates
- Peach
- Plum
- Blueberry
What Vegetables Can Armadillo Lizards Eat?
Armadillo lizard’s diet comprises insects, fruit, pellets, and fresh vegetables. You can feed adult armadillo lizards with vegetables and some of the vegetables that you can feed them are stated below.
- Carrots
- Collard greens
- Dandelions
- Squash
- Broccoli
- Green beans
- Celery
- Cucumber
Read more: What lizards eat fruits?
What Insects Can Armadillo Lizards Eat?
Armadillo lizards are primarily regarded as insectivorous and their main diet comprises termites. Furthermore, termites are an extremely important part of their diet in the wild and they usually forage at termite mounds.
Some of the other insects that they can eat in the wild are beetles, spiders, and millipedes, they can also feed on scorpions.
Crickets are the main feeder insects used for feeding armadillo lizards in captivity. This is because they can be easily caught in the wild or bought from a commercial pet store. Some of the other insects that you can feed in captivity are stated below.
- Superworms.
- Butterworms.
- Pinky mice.
What NOT to Feed Your Armadillo Lizards?
Some of the common foods that you need to avoid when feeding your armadillo lizards include mealworms and toxic greens.
You also need to avoid harmful substances like alcohol, chocolate, and caffeine. Some of the other food items that you should avoid feeding your armadillo lizards are stated below.
- Avocados
- Broccoli
- Cabbage
- Chard
- Corn
- Cucumbers
- Iceberg lettuce
- Kale
- Mushrooms
- Parsley
- Radishes
- Spinach
Note: you should only feed your armadillo lizards with fruits and other greens sparingly.
Armadillo lizard food chart
| Food Type | % in Armadillo Lizard Daily Meal | Feeding Frequency |
| Fruits | 5% | Occasionally |
| Vegetables | 5% | Occasionally |
| Insects | 90% | Every day |
Armadillo Lizard Diet in the Wild
Armadillo lizards are primarily insectivorous in the wild and their main diet is termites. Furthermore, armadillo lizards are usually active when the food is abundant and inactive when food is scarce and this is common during the dry summer months.
They also feed on small invertebrates like insects, spiders, beetles, scorpions, and millipedes. Adult armadillo lizards also feed on plant material but it is usually in small quantities.
Baby and Juvenile Armadillo Lizard Diet
Baby and juvenile armadillo lizards are completely carnivorous animals and will feed only on insects.
In the wild, they eat spiders, crickets, termites, and millipedes. However, you can feed a baby and juvenile armadillo lizards with crickets in captivity.
When feeding with crickets, you need to ensure the crickets are gut-loaded and dusted with calcium and mineral supplement.
You can easily get crickets from a commercial pet store or from the wild.
Some of the other insects that you can feed a baby and juvenile armadillo lizards are super worms and butter worms.
All you need to do is ensure that the insects you feed your baby and juvenile armadillo lizards are half the length of their eyes.
You should also provide them with fresh water in a low flat dish to prevent your lizard from drowning.
Armadillo lizard food chart for baby & juvenile Armadillo lizard
| Food Type | % in their daily meal | Feeding Frequency |
| Fruits | Nil | Nil |
| Vegetables | Nil | Nil |
| Insects | 100 | Daily |
Adult Armadillo Lizard Diet
Unlike baby and juvenile armadillo lizards, the adult armadillo lizard is an omnivorous animal and can feed on both insects and vegetables.
In the wild, termites are an important part of their diet and they usually forage for food at termite mounds.
Adult armadillo lizards also eat spiders, crickets, and millipedes in the wild. However, you can feed adult armadillo lizards with crickets in captivity. You should also ensure that you gut load and dust crickets with calcium and mineral supplement before offering them to your lizard.
Adult armadillo lizards will also eat plant matter but you should avoid feeding them with leafy greens because it does not offer your lizard the right nutritional balance. Some of the other insects that they can eat are super worms, butter worms.
You can also feed them with pinky mice. Furthermore, your armadillo lizard should have access to fresh water and you can offer it to them in a low flat dish to avoid drowning.
Armadillo Lizard Feeding Schedule
When keeping armadillo lizards in captivity, you can incorporate a feeding schedule to help ensure that you feed them when needed.
Having a feeding schedule also helps to bond with your lizard as they get used to the feeding time and will be alert once you show up.
Adult Armadillo Lizard Feeding Schedule
Adult armadillo lizards do not require more food like a baby and juvenile armadillo lizards.
You can feed them with a handful of crickets or other feeder insects that you have dusted or gut loaded with vitamins and minerals.
Since they don’t require much food, you can feed adult armadillo lizards three times a week.
Baby Armadillo Lizard Feeding Schedule
Baby armadillo lizards are in the growth phase and they require a lot of food for their growth.
That is why you will need to feed baby armadillo lizards every day.
You can feed them with a handful of crickets or other feeder insects that you have gut-loaded or dusted with vitamins and minerals supplements.
How to Transition Armadillo lizard to a New Diet
There are times that you can decide to change your armadillo lizards due to one or two reasons. You may want to change their diet due to the unavailability of the diet, the diet is causing stunted growth, or you just decided that it is time to just change their diet.
When it comes to transitioning diet for your lizard, most armadillo lizards will start to take the new diet immediately. However, if you are not sure whether your armadillo lizards will like it or not, you can mix the new diet with the current diet.
You can then slowly increase the amount of the new diet until it is only the new diet that you are feeding your lizard.
Wrapping Up for Armadillo Lizard Diet
When it comes to a perfect choice for beginner hobbyists, armadillo lizards will be one of them.
This is because they have a docile temperament and are very easy to feed. Furthermore, armadillo lizards are omnivorous animals and their diet comprises insects, pellets, and fresh fruit and vegetables.
You can also feed adult armadillo lizards with a pinky mouse.
In captivity, you can easily feed armadillo lizards with crickets without having any issue as long as you gut load and dust the crickets with vitamins and minerals supplement.
