Glyptodonts are an extinct clade of large, heavily armoured armadillos, reaching up to 1.5 metres (4.9 ft) in height, and maximum body masses of around 2 tonnes. They had short, deep skulls, a fused vertebral column, and a large bony carapace made up of hundreds of individual scutes. Some glyptodonts had clubbed tails, similar to ankylosaurid dinosaurs.
Glyptodont
Doedicurus and Glyptodon by Robert Bruce Horsfall
Detail of Propalaehoplophorus scutes, early Miocene, in the permanent collection of The Children's Museum of Indianapolis
Armadillos are New World placental mammals in the order Cingulata. They form part of the superorder Xenarthra, along with the anteaters and sloths. 21 extant species of armadillo have been described, some of which are distinguished by the number of bands on their armor. All species are native to the Americas, where they inhabit a variety of different environments.
Image: Cingulata 2
Image: Pink Fairy Armadillo (Chlamyphorus truncatus) (cropped)
Nine-banded armadillo skeleton.
Three-banded armadillo skeleton on display at the Museum of Osteology