On this page The answer More official answers Which ones Where in the US Sources Yes.
KDFWR: recent years have seen the arrival of the nine-banded armadillo.
KDFWR: “…recent years have seen the arrival of new species such as the nine-banded armadillo” Source
How we answer questions
Are there black bears in Kentucky? Yes. A resident population, primarily in eastern Kentucky (KDFWR). KDFWR
Are there mountain lions in Kentucky? No. KDFWR lists the mountain lion among species that no longer occur in Kentucky. KDFWR
Are there coyotes in Kentucky? Yes. Commonly seen in all 120 counties (KDFWR). KDFWR
On Kentucky's official list Photo: MartinKlippel · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons · resized Dasypus novemcinctus
Size Cat-sized: 15-17 in long not counting the tail, 8-17 lb (FWC); 24-32 in including a 9.5-14.5 in tail (UGA). How to recognize it Bony skin plates that form a shell, which make it easy to identify Long scaly tail, deer-like ears, long pig-like snout Tail encased in 12 bony rings; no canine or incisor teeth Full Nine-banded Armadillo guide
All mammals in the state: Kentucky mammals .
Where the nine-banded armadillo lives in the US Texas: on the state's official list Kentucky: on the state's official list Georgia: on the state's official list (nonnative) Missouri: on the state's official list Virginia: on the state's official list (nonnative) Tennessee: on the state's official list Louisiana: on the state's official list Florida: on the state's official list (nonnative) Illinois: on the state's official list (nonnative) Iowa: on the state's official list Nebraska: on the state's official list Arkansas: on the state's official list Mississippi: on the state's official list North Carolina: on the state's official list (nonnative) Oklahoma: on the state's official list Indiana: on the state's official list South Carolina: on the state's official list New Mexico: on an official source Alabama: on the state's official list Kansas: on the state's official list Official presence. 20 states where a state list or official source names it. Gray means no official record in our data, not that it is absent.
Texas: 6 records Tennessee: 4 records Louisiana: 2 records New York: 1 record Florida: 6 records Arkansas: 2 records Mississippi: 1 record South Carolina: 2 records Kansas: 3 records Observation records. Open-licence records on GBIF in 9 states. Records are sightings people shared, not confirmation that a population lives there.
Nine-banded armadillo: identification, range and danger
When mammals are seen in Kentucky
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1,877 records (GBIF, CC0 and CC BY). Other questions about Kentucky Sources Mammals of Kentucky . Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources (KDFWR). archived copy, captured October 11, 2026; checked November 3, 2026. Quoted passages (2) “…recent years have seen the arrival of new species such as the nine-banded armadillo” “…species such as the gray wolf, red wolf, fisher, mountain lion, and American bison no longer occur in Kentucky” Black Bears . Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources (KDFWR). archived copy, captured September 14, 2026; checked November 3, 2026. Quoted passages (1) “In Kentucky, black bears are found primarily in the eastern part of the state.” Coyotes . Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources (KDFWR). archived copy, captured July 29, 2026; checked November 3, 2026. Quoted passages (1) “In Kentucky, they are now commonly seen in all 120 counties but usually stay hidden from people.” GBIF.org occurrence records, human observations licensed CC0 1.0 or CC BY 4.0 only, accessed November 3, 2026. The datasets behind these counts are listed on our Sources page. 
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