Australian Animals - Tourism Australia Load More Mammals Australia’s mammalian wildlife is unique from the rest of the world. The dingo, or wild dog, is our largest carnivorous mammal, while the numbat, quoll and Tasmanian devil are each generally the size of an average house cat. Dingoes can be found all around Australia, except for Tasmania, and the best places to spot them include Queensland’s Fraser Island , the Kimberley in Western Australia and across the deserts of the Northern Territory and South Australia. Numbats are found only in Western Australia and the Tasmanian devil can only be seen in wildlife parks or in the Tasmanian wilderness. Endangered quolls are difficult to spot in the wild, but inhabit the wet forests of southeastern Australia and Tasmania, and a small area of northern Queensland. The bilby can be seen in Francois Peron National Park in Western Australia. Marsupials Australia has more than 140 species of marsupials, including kangaroos, wallabies, koalas, and wombats.

Our 55 different native species of kangaroos and wallabies vary greatly in size and weight, ranging from half a kilogram (1 pound) to 90 (198.4 pounds) kilograms. Come face to face with kangaroos and wallabies in Namadgi and Kosciuszko National Parks in the Australian Alps , Pebbly Beach in New South Wales and Tasmania’s Freycinet National Park . Despite popular belief, our native koala is not a bear. Spot koalas at Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve near Canberra, Port Stephens in New South Wales and the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary in Queensland. The wombat is another creature you’ll find here – a stout, burrowing animal that can weigh up to 36 kilograms (79.4 pounds). Some of the best places to see them in the wild are the Blue Mountains National Park in New South Wales, Wilsons Promontory in Victoria and Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park in Tasmania. Monotremes Another animal group found only in Australia is the monotremes, or egg-laying mammals.

The most distinctive is the platypus, a river-dwelling animal with a bill like a duck, a furry waterproof body and webbed feet. Platypuses live in burrows, which they dig into the banks of rivers. They are difficult to spot, but your best chance to see them is in small streams and calm rivers along the east coast, such as the Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve near Canberra, Lake Elizabeth in Victoria’s Great Otway National Park and in northern New South Wales and Queensland. The echidna, otherwise known as the spiny anteater, is another of Australia’s monotremes. It has a prickly coat like a hedgehog or porcupine – so don’t try to pick one up! Kangaroo Island is one of the best places to spot them in the wild. Birds We have more than 800 species of birds in Australia, and about half cannot be found anywhere else. They range from tiny honeyeaters to the large, flightless emu, which stands nearly two metres (6.6 feet) tall.

See cassowaries in our tropical rainforest, kookaburras in our open woodlands and emus in sclerophyll forests and savanna woodlands. Get up close to penguins on Kangaroo Island in South Australia and Philip Island in Victoria , or hear the winter call of the lyrebirds in Wollumbin National Park and in the Gondwana Rainforests in southeast Queensland. There are 55 species of parrots in Australia, including a spectacular variety of cockatoos, rosellas, lorikeets, cockatiels, parakeets and budgerigars, which are seen in rural and urban areas. Reptiles Australia has more venomous snakes than any other continent, 21 of the world’s 25 deadliest in fact. But not all are poisonous, and we also have some stunning pythons and tree snakes. We are famous for our crocodiles, and host two different species, the freshwater crocodile, which is found nowhere else in the world, and the estuarine crocodile (also known as the saltwater crocodile). The Kimberley, Kakadu National Park and Cape York Peninsula are excellent places to see crocodiles in their natural habitat.

Of the seven species of marine turtles in the world, six can be found here including the flatback turtle, green turtle, hawksbill turtle, leatherback turtle, loggerhead turtle and olive ridley turtle. The best spots to see turtles are Ningaloo Reef in Western Australia and Eco Beach in Broome . We also have an amazing array of lizards, ‘dragons’ and goannas (monitor lizards), such as the spectacular frilled-neck lizard and bearded dragon. Thorny devils can be found in Western Australia’s desert habitats, Shark Bay, Carnarvon and Exmouth. Marine animals Our marine environments support around 4,000 of the world’s 22,000 types of fish, as well as 30 of the world’s 58 seagrass species. We also have the world’s largest coral reef system, the World Heritage-listed Great Barrier Reef , where there are countless species of colourful fish, including the beautiful clownfish seen in Finding Dory. We also have around 1,700 different species of coral.

Larger marine species include the humpback, southern right and orca whales, the dugong (or manatee), several dolphin species and a number of different sharks. Catch a glimpse of the whales during their migration along the east coast from May to November, or swim with gentle whale sharks on Ningaloo Reef in Western Australia. Kangaroo Island is one of the best places to see beautiful Australian fur seals in the wild. More On Australian Animals Echidna - ZooBorns Echidna November 25, 2016 Taronga Zoo is celebrating its first successful Short-beaked Echidna births in 29 years, with keepers monitoring the progress of three healthy Echidna babies born to three different mothers. The puggles, as baby Echidnas are called, have just opened their eyes and begun to develop their characteristic spines in the safety and warmth of their nursery burrows in Taronga’s new Echidna breeding facility. Photo Credit: Paul Fahy Echidnas are notoriously difficult to breed in human care, but keepers are pleased with the progress of the tiny trio and first-time mothers, Ganyi, Spike, and Pitpa.

Echidnas are one of only two Australian mammals that lay eggs (the other is the Platypus). The puggle hatches after 10 days and is carried around by its mother in a pouch-like skin fold for up to two months. Once the puggle starts to develop spines it is deposited in a specially-constructed nursery burrow and the mother returns to feed it every 3-6 days. “All three mothers are doing an amazing job and tending to their puggles as needed. We have one mum, Spike, who is so attentive that she returns to feed her baby every second day,” said zoo keeper Suzie Lemon. The three puggles all hatched in August. The youngest was born to mother Pitpa, who was the last Echidna born at Taronga in 1987. “A great deal of mystery still surrounds this spiny species. Echidnas are quite elusive in the wild, so it’s hard to study their natural breeding behaviors,” said Suzie. Suzie said the sudden success of Taronga’s Echidna breeding program could be attributed to the newly completed breeding facility, which was designed after extensive research and consultation with other zoos and wildlife parks.

The facility includes insulated nest boxes to ensure the puggles remain warm and safe as they develop. “A day in the puggle world consists of lots of sleeping. They can be buried up to 30cm deep in their burrow, so they’ll just sleep and use all their energy to grow and develop,” said Suzie. Keepers have begun to weigh the puggles every three days to monitor their body condition and general development. The heaviest of the trio weighs over 500 grams, while the youngest weighs about 250 grams. “This is a big step forward for Taronga. By monitoring the puggles so closely we’ve now got a good broad understanding of their growth cycle and development,” said Suzie. Keepers have yet to choose names or determine the sexes of the three puggles, which won’t start to explore outside their burrows until early next year. A baby Echidna is recovering at Australia’s Taronga Zoo after being seriously injured when its burrow was dug up by a bulldozer.

Photo Credit: Paul Fahy Zoo keepers have taken on the role of surrogate mother to the baby Echidna, called a puggle, feeding it a special milk mixture from the palms of their hands. The puggle was first brought to the zoo with a deep wound to the side of its body after its nursery burrow was accidentally dug up by a bulldozer in December. Believed to have been just two months old when rescued, the Echidna required weeks of antibiotics, hand rearing and sleep in a temperature-controlled artificial burrow. The puggle – which is still too young for keepers to determine its gender –has doubled in size since February. Dubbed ‘Newman’ after the Seinfeld character who shares its beady eyes, the puggle is finally feeding confidently. Instead of having teats like other mammals, Echidnas have patches on their abdomen that excrete milk for their young to lap up. Newman now eats steadily for about 40 minutes at a time, stopping only to blow milk out its nose. As adults, Echidnas use their sticky tongues to slurp up ants and termites.

Echidnas belong to a group of egg-laying mammals called monotremes, which are found only in Australia and New Guinea. Their spiny coats are an effective defense against predators. If their spines aren’t enough to keep them safe, Echidnas use their powerful claws to dig themselves into the earth, disappearing like a sinking ship. See more photos of Newman below. January 29, 2014 Photo credit: Taronga Western Plains Zoo A team of veterinary nurses at the wildlife hospital of Taronga Western Plains Zoo in Australia has been hand-raising and caring for an Echidna puggle over the last couple of months. The baby Echidna was found on the road between Wellington and Dubbo. It is believed its mother was hit by a car, orphaning the puggle as a result. The puggle came into care at the Zoo’s Wildlife Hospital in early November and has been cared for by vet nurses ever since. “The puggle is now approximately four months old and responding very well under the watchful eye of the vet nurses,” said vet nurse, Jodie Milton.

“It’s feeding well and gaining weight steadily, so we’ll be able to wean it in about three to four months’ time and start introducing it to solid food.” The little puggle has also started to develop the species’ distinctive spines, leaving its team of dedicated vet nurses pleased with its development. It is extremely rare to see an Echidna puggle, let alone raise one, because they live in their mother’s pouch for two to three months before moving into a secluded burrow for up to a year. In the coming months the Echidna puggle will be transferred to Taronga Zoo in Sydney to join the Short-beaked Echidna breeding program at the Zoo. “It will be some time before the puggle will be able to fend for itself, but until then it’s in safe hands,” said Jodie. September 18, 2013 Who's this little critter? It's a 30-day-old Echidna baby, known as a 'puggle'— one of only 24 ever bred in captivity! The proud parents are Tippy and Pickle of Australia Zoo .

The tiny baby, whose sex has not been announced, is well cared for by its mom, Tippy. Echidnas are monotremes, the only living group of egg-laying mammals. Echidnas breed in July and August. Four weeks after conception, the mother lays a single, soft egg and places it in a pouch on her abdomen. After just ten days, a tiny, naked puggle hatches and continues to develop in mom's warm pouch, lapping up milk secreted from glands on her abdomen. The puggle will stay in Tippy's pouch for about 60 days until it is just too spiky to carry around. Then she will hide her baby in a burrow under a log and return to nurse it occasionally until it is weaned at about seven or eight months old. Photo credits: Australia Zoo Echidnas live only in Australia and New Guinea. They have no teeth, but are well adapted to eat termites, ants, beetle-larvae, and other soil invertebrates: their large strong claws are great for breaking open rotting logs, and their long snouts allow them to root around in soil.

Short-beaked Echidnas are a very common species, but the other three species (the Sir David's Long-beaked, Eastern Long-beaked, and Western Long-beaked Echidnas) are listed as Critically Endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. They are threatened by hunting as well as by habitat loss from logging and agricultural expansion. The successful birth of another puggle in captivity brings us a step closer to conserving these unique creatures. March 10, 2013 You’ve been watching Beau the orphaned puggle (baby Echidna) grow up on the pages of ZooBorns ever since it was found on a hiking trail near Sydney, Australia and brought to the Taronga Zoo. Upon arriving at the zoo in October, Beau was about a month old and nearly hairless. About a month later , you could see fine hairs beginning to sprout. Now, Beau is growing the coat of protective spikes typical of adult Echidnas. Photo Credits: Taronga Zoo “I’m thrilled with Beau’s speedy development!

With fur and larger spines, Beau certainly looks like an Echidna now!” said veterinary nurse Annabelle Sehlmeier, who also acts as Beau’s surrogate mother. More agile and co-ordinated, Beau is also starting to explore the surroundings and exhibit Echidna behaviours. “Beau’s become adventurous and now climbs out of the travelling box. When disturbed, the young Echidna will flinch, curl up, or dig into the dirt, which is exactly what Echidnas do,” Annabelle explained. The puggle, which weighs about three pounds (1.3 kg), lives in a large plastic tub with dirt for burrowing, although it still finds comfort in its nesting box that contains shredded paper and a tea towel. December 29, 2012 ZooBorns has been keeping fans of Beau the Echidna puggle updated on his progress ever since he was introduced on October 23 . That's when the Taronga Zoo first shared photos of the tiny baby Echidna after he was found orphaned on a hiking trail near Sydney, Australia. Taronga Zoo staff estimate that he was about a month old at the time of his rescue.

Photo Credit: Taronga Zoo Two months later, Beau is growing strong under the care of the Taronga Zoo staff. Beau will take milk from his keepers' hands for several more months, as Echidnas are not fully weaned until they are seven or eight months old. Echidna puggles normally suck milk from patches on their mothers' bellies, rather than from teats. Echidnas are mammals, but they belong to a subgroup of mammals called monotremes. This speical group includes Echidnas and Platypus, and they are the only mammals that lay eggs. December 16, 2012 Perth Zoo’s groundbreaking Echidna breeding program has produced two puggles (baby Echidnas) and a breeding milestone: These puggles represent the first successful breeding from zoo-born Echidnas and have shown that Echidnas breed at a younger age than previously thought. The puggles were born to four-year-old first-time mothers Mila and Chindi, both bred and born at Perth Zoo. The new additions were named Nyingarn (Nyoongar for Echidna) and Babbin (Nyoongar for friend).

The puggles weighed less than one gram each when they hatched in August and spent their first two months in their mothers’ pouches before being deposited in nursery burrows. DNA testing will reveal the puggles’ genders. “Until now, it was believed female Echidnas did not breed until the age of five so these latest births have shed new light on Echidna reproduction,” Environment Minister Bill Marmion said. The groundbreaking work of the Perth Zoo’s Short-beaked Echidna breeding program could help conserve its endangered cousin, the Long-beaked Echidna. The Perth Zoo has produced eight of the 24 Short-beaked Echidnas that have been bred in captivity. Short-beaked Echidnas are part of a group of mammals called monotremes. Females lay a single egg, which is incubated for about 11 days before it hatches. The baby, called a puggle, completes its development in the mother’s pouch. As adults, Short-beaked Echidnas are covered with spines. They feed on insects, which are collected with their long, sticky tongues.

Photo Credit: Perth Zoo November 12, 2012 Does this puggle look familiar? Many ZooBorns readers first learned about puggles after being introduced to this little girl on October 23 . We're happy to report that Beau, Taronga Zoo's Short-beaked Echidna baby, also known as a puggle, is doing very well under the watchful eyes of the nurses in their wildlife hospital. In the wild, female Echidnas return to their burrow every few days to feed their offspring, so Beau gets fed milk every three days, which has helped her triple in size. Her caregivers have begun exposing the youngster to dirt, so that Beau can learn to dig and burrow! She is developing a prickly coating of spikes, which rise a few millimetres above her skin, as pictured in its most recent image below. Photo Credit: photo 1, Ben Gibson, Photo 2, Lorinda Taylor In case you ddin't see it, here's the video of Beau nursing and getting cleaned up.

October 23, 2012 A 30-day-old Short-Beaked Echidna (puggle) was brought to Taronga Zoo after it was found helpless on a hiking trail near Sydney, Australia. It's quite possible the tiny puggle fell out of its mother's pouch as typically, Echidna babies are left in cozy burrows at around 45 days of age. Echidna moms typically return to these dens once every few days to feed their young. At the moment, this tiny orphaned puggle is sucking milk from her human caretaker's hand. Female Echindas do not have teats, but rather feed their young from milk patches on their bodies. Echidnas are not weened until six or seven months of age, so this little one will be receiving lots of T.L.C. in the months to come. Photo credit: Ben Gibson / Taronga Zoo Echidna Tachyglossus aculeatus The echidna is best known for its amazing biology. Like the platypus, this unusual mammal lays eggs and suckles its young.

The echidna and platypus are the only members of a primitive group of mammals known as monotremes. Echidnas are toothless and feed almost exclusively on ants and termites. They expose termite galleries by breaking open nests with their strong forepaws or snout or by digging into soil. They then extract the termites, which adhere to their long, sticky tongues. When disturbed, the echidna either curls into a spiny ball to protect its soft underside, or digs its belly into the soil, so that only the spines are exposed. DESCRIPTION: Long spines cover the body and fur is present between them. These slow-moving creatures have a bulbous forehead and a long snout to collect their food. Males have a spur on the ankle of the hind leg but, unlike that of the platypus, it is not venomous. They are equipped with a long sticky tongue that extends perhaps 17 centimetres beyond the end of the snout. OTHER NAMES: Spiny anteater. STATUS AND DISTRIBUTION: Echidnas are widely distributed throughout the Australian continent and Tasmania. Although not commonly seen, they are not considered threatened.

PREFERRED HABITAT: They may be found in any place with a good supply of ants and termites. They live in a wide variety of habitats, from cold mountainous peaks to deserts. They deal with very cold weather by hibernating and avoid extreme heat by sheltering in burrows or other refuges. LIFE HISTORY: Echidnas are usually solitary. However, during the breeding season between July and August they give off a strong smell that may help advertise their presence to the opposite sex. During this time, several males may follow a single female in a "train" until she is ready to mate. About two weeks after mating occurs, a single soft-shelled egg is deposited directly into the pouch and hatches after 10 days. Because the echidna does not have teats, the baby clings to specialised hairs within the pouch, where it suckles milk oozing from the mother's mammary glands. The initially tiny young has an incredible growth rate, increasing its body weight up to 500-fold in the first 45 days of life. Completely hairless when born, the young is covered with short spines by the time it leaves the pouch.

When it becomes too big and spiky to be carried about, the youngster will be placed in a burrow to which the mother returns every five or six days for suckling. Here it remains until about six months old. Dingoes and goannas will occasionally eat echidnas. Their relative abundance on large, fox-free islands such as Kangaroo Island in South Australia suggests that the fox may be a significant predator. HOW TO SEE THEM: Echidnas are rarely seen. However, extensive iggings at the base of termite mounds are a sure sign of their presence. If you are bushwalking and notice large excavations under a log, try shining a torch inside to see if the digger is still around. These mammals have distinctive and quite shiny cylindrical droppings in which ant remains are easily distinguished. An Echidna Puggle From Fourth Crossing Wildlife Echidna Puggle - so tiny! A puggle is what you call a baby Echidna or Platypus. The Echidna and Platypus are the only Australian marsupials that lay eggs and not live young.

The Echidna lays an egg which is then incubated in the pouch, which is really more like a fold of skin over the abdomen area which is closed with contracting muscles. The newborn is hatched around 10 days later and the tiny puggle (less than 1.3cm long and around 0.3 of a gram) is carried in the pouch until it starts to grow spines. At this stage the mother leaves it in a burrow and only returns every few days to feed it. The young Echidna leaves the burrow at around 6 months of age and is weaned approximately 4 weeks later. When the Platypus lays eggs it is thought that she incubates them by resting them on her stomach and curling her tail over them. The young hatch around 10 days later and leave the burrow at around 4 months of age. The Creature Feature: 10 Fun Facts About the Echidna | WIRED The Creature Feature: 10 Fun Facts About the Echidna subscribe 6 months for $5 - plus a FREE Portable Phone Charger. On Twitter 10 hours Some people think LeBron flopped during this mid-game collision.

So we used physics to calculate how hard he was hi… twitter.com/i/web/status/8… Advertisement. Slide: 1 / of 4. Caption: Caption: Tachyglossus_aculeatus_setosus. Photo: JKMelville, via Wikimedia Commons. Distributed under a Slide: 2 / of 4. Caption: Caption: Tachyglossus aculeatus setosus. Photo: JKMelville, via Wikimedia Commons. Distributed under a CC-BY-SA-3.0 license. Slide: 3 / of 4. Caption: Caption: Tachyglossus aculeatus. Photo: JJ Harrison, via Wikimedia Commons. Distributed under a CC-BY-SA-3.0 license. Slide: 4 / of 4. Caption: Caption: Tachyglossus aculeatus. Photo: I, KeresH, via Wikimedia Commons. Distributed under a CC-BY-SA-3.0 license. Author: Mary Bates. Mary Bates Science Date of Publication: 07.03.14. Time of Publication: 9:59 am.

9:59 am The Creature Feature: 10 Fun Facts About the Echidna Tachyglossus aculeatus setosus. JKMelville, via Wikimedia Commons The echidna has spines like a porcupine, a beak like a bird, a pouch like a kangaroo, and lays eggs like a reptile. Also known as spiny anteaters, they’re small, solitary mammals native to Australia, Tasmania, and New Guinea. They’re usually between 12 and 17 inches long and weigh between 4 and 10 pounds. There are two genera of echidna. The short-beaked echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus) belongs to the genus Tachyglossus, while the three species of long-beaked echidna belong to the genus Zaglossus. Short-beaked echidnas are smaller and have longer hair than long-beaked echidnas. Long-beaked echidnas, native to New Guinea, include one species named after Sir David Attenborough (Z. attenborough). These animal oddities are elusive, but the more scientists discover about echidnas, the weirder it gets. Read on to see for yourself.

1. Their spines are actually modified hairs. Echidnas’ bodies (with the exception of their undersides, faces, and legs) are covered with 2-inch long spines. Fur between the spines provides insulation. 2. Echidnas live slow and long. Echidnas have the lowest body temperature of any mammal, 32°C (89°F). Their body temperatures are not controlled in the same way as that of other mammals, and can fluctuate by up 6–8°C over the course of the day. Their long life spans — up to 50 years in captivity, with anecdotal reports of wild animals reaching 45 years — are due to their low body temperature and slow metabolism. Tachyglossus aculeatus setosus. Photo: JKMelville, via Wikimedia Commons 3. Male echidnas have a bizarre, four-headed penis. You might wonder how you mate with a four-headed penis. During sex, two of the heads shut down while the other two grow bigger to fit into the female’s two-branched reproductive tract. Males alternate the heads they use between matings.

This one-sided ejaculation may play a role in sperm competition, as many males attempt to fertilize the same female. In another possible adaptation for sperm competition, echidna sperm form bundles that swim faster than individual sperm cells. If you’re curious about what the echidna’s penis looks like (and really, who isn’t?), you can find photos here and watch a video here . 4. Echidnas form mating trains. A strange process marks the start of echidna breeding season. Males line up nose to tail behind a single female, forming a train of up to a dozen individuals. Trains can last more than a month, with males dropping out and rejoining. When the female is finally ready to mate, the males dig a trench in the ground around her. The males compete for mating honors by pushing each other out of the trench. The last one remaining gets to mate with the female. Male echidnas may also mate with hibernating females. Males sometimes wake up from hibernation early and sneak into the burrows of still-hibernating females. This can result in female echidnas waking up from hibernation and finding themselves pregnant. Tachyglossus aculeatus.

Photo: JJ Harrison, via Wikimedia Commons 5. Echidnas are egg-laying mammals. Along with the platypus, the echidna is a member of the monotremes, an order of egg-laying mammals found in Australia. After mating, a female echidna lays a single, soft-shelled, leathery egg, about the size of a dime, into her pouch. Ten days later, the baby echidna (called a puggle and smaller than a jelly bean) hatches. 6. Echidnas are mammals without nipples. Like all mammals, echidnas feed their young milk. But they do it without nipples. Instead, female echidnas have special glands in their pouches called milk patches that secrete milk, which the puggle laps up. 7. They are electroreceptive. Like the platypus, the echidna has an electroreceptive system. While the platypus has 40,000 electroreceptors on its bill, echidnas have only 400-2,000 electroreceptors on their snouts. 8. They’re toothless but make up for it with their tongues.

At the end of their slender snouts, echidnas have tiny mouths and toothless jaws. They use their long, sticky tongues to feed on ants, termites, worms, and insect larvae. (The short-beaked echidna earned its scientific name, Tachyglossus, meaning “fast tongue,” from its way of rapidly darting its 6-inch tongue in and out of its mouth to slurp up insects). Since they have no teeth, echidnas break their food down with hard pads located on the roof of the mouth and back of the tongue. (Watch a video of an echidna hunting here .) Tachyglossus aculeatus. Photo: I, KeresH, via Wikimedia Commons 9. Echidnas have unusual brains. The echidna has a very large brain for its body size. Part of this might be due to their enlarged neocortex, which makes up half of the echidna’s brain (compare this to about 30 percent in most other mammals and 80 percent in humans). It was long thought that echidnas didn’t enter rapid eye movement (REM) sleep at all, the type of sleep associated with dreaming in humans.

But recently researchers found echidnas will experience REM sleep if they’re at the right temperature. They enter REM sleep at around 25 °C (77 °F), but not at higher or lower temperatures. 10. They host the world’s largest flea. Bradiopsylla echidnae, the echidna flea, is thought to be the world’s largest flea at 4 mm (0.15 inches) long. Bradiopsylla echidnae . Encyclopedia of Life. Retrieved June 2014. Cason, M. (2009). “Tachyglossus aculeatus” . Animal Diversity Web. Retrieved June 2014. Dell’Amore, C. (2014). Spiky Baby-Killers: Echidna Secrets Revealed . National Geographic Weird & Wild blog. Retrieved June 2014. Johnston, S. D., Smith, B., Pyne, M., Stenzel, D., and Holt, W. V. (2007). One-sided ejaculation of echidna sperm bundles.

American Naturalist 170(6): E162-E164. doi: 10.1086/522847 . Nicol, S. C., Andersen, N. A., Phillips, N. H., and Berger, B. J. (2000). The echidna manifests typical characteristics of rapid eye movement sleep. Neurosci. Lett. 283(1): 49–52. doi: 10.1016/S0304-3940(00)00922-8 . Rismiller, P. D. and McKelvey, M. (2000). Frequency of breeding and recruitment in the short-beaked echidna, Tachyglossus aculeatus . Journal of Mammalogy 81(1): 1-17. Sorin, A. and P. Myers (2001). “ Tachyglossidae .” Animal Diversity Web. Retrieved June 2014. Stewart, D. (2003).

“ The Enigma of the Echidna .” National Wildlife. Retrieved June 2014. “ Tachyglossidae (Short-beaked echidnas).” Encyclopedia of Life. Retrieved June 2014. “ Zaglossus (Long-beaked echidnas).” Encyclopedia of Life. Retrieved June 2014. Echidna Information and Facts Echidna Information and Facts Echidna information, facts and some Echidna statistics Sponsored by Echidna�s scientific name is Tachyglossus aculeatus (spiny fast-tongue or Spiny anteater).

Echidna's lifespan is over 45 years Echidnas grow up to 50cm (20") in length Their tongue is very long and sticky and is perfect for catching the hundreds of termites and ants that make up their staple diet Each of the echidna�s spines is formed from a single hair An echidna can lift objects twice its weight Echidnas drink water and can swim Like the male Platypus, the male echidna has spurs, but has no venom glands attached to them Echidna is slightly less intelligent than a cat Mating takes place Belly-to-belly, which avoids the male spiking himself on the female�s spines The echidna is best known not only as a mascot of Sydney Olympic Games 2000, but also for its amazing biology. Like the platypus, this unusual mammal lays eggs and suckles its young. The echidna and platypus are the only members of a primitive group of mammals known as monotremes. Found all over Australia, the short-beaked Echidna is covered with sharp spines and has strong legs and claws. Echidnas are widely distributed throughout Australia and Tasmania.

Although not commonly seen, they are not considered threatened. They live in a wide variety of habitats, from cold mountainous peaks to deserts. They usually found in places with a good supply of ants and termites, where it lies on an ant-mound, sticks out its tongue and lets ants walk onto it. Echidnas have no teeth. It crushes its insect food between horny plates on its tongue and the roof of its mouth. Echidna | San Diego Zoo Animals & Plants San Diego Zoo Animals & Plants Tachyglossus aculeatus, Zaglossus bruijnii, Zaglossus attenboroughi, Zaglossus bartoni Class: Mammalia (Mammals) Species: T. aculeatus, Z. bruijnii, Z. attenboroughi, Z. bartoni ABOUT The echidna (ih-KID-na), or spiny anteater, is an unusual mammal. It is so different from any other that it still puzzles researchers and scientists. The echidna has remained unchanged since prehistoric times, finding ways to survive while other species became extinct. But what really sets the echidna apart from other mammals? Female echidnas lay eggs!

Egg-laying mammals are called monotremes. There are only three monotremes in the world: the long-beaked echidna, short-beaked echidna, and duck-billed platypus. It is found throughout Australia, Tasmania and New Guinea, from the highlands to the deserts to the forests. It is a solitary creature and minds its own business. The echidna may be active during the day, evening, or both, depending on the season and food sources. The echidna has a tiny face with small eyes and a long nose, sometimes called a beak. The eyes don’t help the echidna see well, but its acute sense of hearing and smell give this unusual mammal the information it needs to know to survive. The short-beaked echidna has dark fur almost completely hidden by a covering of hollow, barbless quills, called spines, on its back and sides. Long-beaked echidnas have little fur and more visible spines. The beige-and-black spines on all four species, which are about 2 inches (5 centimeters) long, help camouflage the echidna in the brush. The echidna’s short legs are ideal for digging.

The hind legs point backward, with an extra-long claw on the second toe that can be used to “comb” or scratch out dirt and bugs that get wedged between the echidna’s spines. Its powerful front feet can dig straight down into the earth. The claws on its front legs are also useful for tearing open termite mounds. Digging in for protection. Other than fires and drought, the main threats to the slow-moving echidna are feral dogs and cats as well as dingoes and foxes. Cars also kill hundreds of these animals each year on the roadways of Australia. The echidna has three options when faced with danger: run away on its short, stubby legs, dig, or curl up. The echidna’s digging ability is usually its best bet. Some say it can dig a hole just as fast as a human using a shovel can! The echidna digs straight into the dirt until only a spiny rear end can be seen, making it almost impossible for a predator to grab and pull it out. It can also protect itself by curling up into a tight, spiky ball, hiding its face and feet.

Surprisingly, the echidna is an excellent swimmer and tree climber, too! HABITAT AND DIET Echidnas inhabit scrubland, desert, and montane forest in Australia, Tasmania, Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea. Digging for food and shelter is key, so areas with loose topsoil work well, though these animals can plow through hard-packed dirt as well. The nostrils at the tip of the beak help the echidna sniff out its next meal. The rubbery snout is also sensitive to electrical signals from an insect’s body. It is strong enough to break open hollow logs and plow up the forest floor in search of insects. An echidna’s typical day begins by finding something to eat. Like anteaters, the echidna has no teeth. So how does it eat? The echidna has a long, sticky tongue to catch and chew its food: ants, termites, or earthworms. Once food is located, the echidna tears into the mound or nest with its large, sharp claws and then uses the 6-inch (15-centimeter) tongue to lap up the bugs or worms.

Hard pads at the base of the tongue and on the roof of the mouth grind the food into a paste for swallowing. Echidnas at the San Diego Zoo are fed a “milkshake” made of ground-up leaf eater biscuits and dog kibble, with water added to form a thick paste to lick up. FAMILY LIFE Echidna breeding season is during July and August. An adult female echidna usually lays a single, leathery egg once a year. She rolls the newly laid egg, about the size of a grape, into a deep pocket, or pouch, on her belly to keep it safe. Ten days later, the baby echidna, called a puggle, hatches. It is smaller than a jelly bean! The puggle uses its tiny, see-through claws to grip the special hairs within the mother’s pouch. The mother does not have nipples the way other mammals do. Instead, the little puggle laps up milk that the mother’s body secretes from special glands in her pouch. Fortunately for the mother, the puggle does not yet have spines sticking out! It remains in the pouch until its spines begin to break through its skin, at about 53 days.

Then the mother puts the puggle into a burrow, where she returns to feed it every 5 to 10 days until it is big enough to go out on its own, at about 7 months old. The echidna is one of the Earth’s oldest surviving species. Yet there are many questions scientists still have about this elusive animal. What is its life span in the wild? When is an echidna old enough to start a family? What is the mother/puggle relationship like? What are its daily habits? It’s fun to realize that there is still so much to learn about animals. The echidna has many surprises yet to reveal! AT THE ZOO The San Diego Zoo’s first echidnas arrived from Australia in 1956. Acquired from a private donation, the pair lived in the Zoo’s Children’s Zoo for many years before an astute keeper noted that the larger one, named Erma, might be a “he” rather than a “she.” A thorough veterinary exam revealed the truth, and Erma was renamed Victor. He continued to live in the Children’s Zoo as our oldest mammal and served as a wonderful echidna ambassador until his passing in 2012.

He was believed to be at least 58 years old. The Zoo currently has two short-beaked echidnas that serve as animal ambassadors. They can be seen during special animal presentations or in their exhibit in Australian Outback. LIFE SPAN

Question: By what name is the Australian echidna also known?
Answer: SPINY ANTEATER