NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Chacoan Fairy Armadillo
Calyptophractus retusus (Burmeister, 1863)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The greater fairy armadillo (Calyptophractus retusus), also known as Burmeister's armadillo or the Chacoan fairy armadillo, is a species of armadillo in the family Chlamyphoridae. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, and Paraguay. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry shrubland and subtropical or tropical dry lowland grassland. It is threatened by habitat loss and persecution.
It is the only species in the genus Calyptophractus. And one of the two fairy armadillos (Chlamyphorinae), the other being the pink fairy armadillo Chlamyphorus truncatus.
Wikipedia contributors, Greater fairy armadillo; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T10:10:52.573756+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Calyptophractus retusus (Burmeister, 1863)
- Name authority
- (Burmeister, 1863)
- Common name
- Chacoan Fairy Armadillo
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Cingulata
- Family
- Chlamyphoridae
- Genus
- Calyptophractus
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classMammalia Linnaeus, 1758
- subclassTheria Parker & Haswell, 1897
- infraclassEutheria Gill, 1872
- orderCingulata Illiger, 1811
- familyChlamyphoridae Bonaparte, 1850
- subfamilyChlamyphorinae Bonaparte, 1850
- genusCalyptophractus Fitzinger, 1871
- speciesCalyptophractus retusus (Burmeister, 1863)
Close classified relatives
No other member of this genus is present in the selected snapshot.
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Chlamyphorus retusus Burmeister, 1863 Burmeister, 1863 | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=727511 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:Q6WX. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.