The World Cup mascot armadillo needs our help

A Brazilian three-banded armadillo rolls itself into a ball. When threatened, the three-banded armadillo rolls itself into a ball. © Fotolia (© belizar/Fotolia)
74,634 supporters

The Brazilian three-banded armadillo was chosen as the World Cup mascot. But outside the stadiums, it is facing extinction. Please sign our petition and tell the Brazilian government to protect Fuleco’s habitat!

Call to action

To: Brazilian Environment Minister Izabella Teixeira

“World Cup mascot “Fuleco” must make a real contribution to the preservation of its real-life model The Brazilian government must honor its promises.”

Read letter

The Brazilian three-banded armadillo is able to roll itself into a ball – an amazing capability that explains its local name tatu-bola, or ball armadillo. It’s easy to see that it was the perfect choice to be the mascot for the World Cup in Brazil. But life is not at all perfect for the armadillo: Far from being as omnipresent in Brazil as soccer balls, it now exists only in small, isolated populations on the edge of extinction.

The armadillo lives primarily in the open savannahs in the northeast of the country but humans are steadily encroaching on its habitat, using the land for charcoal, cattle breeding and, increasingly, soy and sugar cane plantations. To make matters worse, hunting is taking a massive toll of the three-banded armadillo. 

A local NGO campaigned for the armadillo to become the World Cup mascot in the hope that it would raise awareness among sports fans for the threat to the species and the environment in general. The mascot’s name, “Fuleco”, was created using the Portuguese words for soccer and ecology. 

In response to criticism, the Brazilian government drew up a five-year plan that was to include nature reserves and a research center. Only 2 percent of the funds for this project have materialized so far, however, and no new nature reserves have been designated. 

Brazilian scientists are now turning up the heat on Environment Minister Izabella Teixeira. 

“If we collect enough signatures now, we can push the government to save the Brazilian armadillo and score a much-needed goal for conservation,” Dr. Felipe Melo of the University of Pernambuco writes. 

Please support the scientists’ petition to Brazil’s environment minister and help save the three-banded armadillo.

Back­ground Letter

To: Brazilian Environment Minister Izabella Teixeira

Dear Minister Teixeira,

Brazil uses the three-banded armadillo in the shape of the mascot Fuleco to market the 2014 FIFA World Cup and – supposedly – to raise awareness of the existential threat to the species. In reality, however, very little has been done to protect the animals.

The Brazilian scientist Dr. Felipe Melo of the University of Pernambuco and a number of his colleagues have sent you an urgent appeal.

They demand that the government release the funds it has promised for setting up 26 nature reserves in Brazil, create new reserves in the armadillos’ habitat, the Caatinga ecosystem, and publish an action plan for the preservation of the species.

Please listen to the scientists and do what is necessary to save the three-banded armadillo from extinction.

Yours sincerely,

Subscribe to our newsletter.

Stay in the loop on rainforest conservation issues with our free newsletter!