Soccer ball armadillo

Biologist Rodrigo Cerqueira holds an armadillo, named Ana Botafogo in honor of the Brazilian dancer, at the Rio Zoo in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on May 21, 2014. The three-banded armadillo is in danger of extinction, largely because of deforestation and hunting in its habitat in the shrub lands of northeastern Brazil. Those risks in large part are why the armadillo was chosen as the World Cup mascot. Another is that when it's frightened, it rolls up into a ball small enough to fit into one hand.