Armadillo sightings are increasing in Virginia

Armadillos are scurrying up the coast and into Virginia, according to Cardinal News.

What’s happening: Regular sightings began around 2010, per the Southwest Virginia-based nonprofit newsroom.

• The critters, typically associated with Texas, were most recently reported in Pulaski, Montgomery and Wise counties.
• The northernmost sighting to date was in Roanoke last summer.

Be smart: Armadillos have been slowly marching northward for centuries, the publication reports.

• They made it to Texas in the 1840s, were pushing into Arkansas, Mississippi and Alabama by the 1970s, and they’re now well established as close as North Carolina.

What’s next: There’s debate about how far north armadillos can survive, with Pennsylvania floated as a possible upper boundary, experts told Cardinal News.