Pelican Lagoon Research Centre

Echidna Care

MONOTREME EXTREME
The Short-beaked Echidna
( Tachyglossus aculeatus multiaculeatus)
tak'-ee-glos'-us ah-kue'-lay-ah'-tus

Echidna facts:

Echidnas are mammals; they have hair and suckle their young on milk . They are warm blooded.
The Australian Short-beaked Echidna is one of three surviving monotremes. Monotremes are a special group of mammals which lay eggs. There are three monotremes living on the planet today: the platypus, the short beaked echidna (just called echidna) and the long beaked echidna . Today, the long beaked echidna lives only on the island of Papua New Guinea.
Ancestors of echidnas roamed the planet with the dinosaurs. Dinosaurs died out but monotremes are still alive.
The echidna eats lots of invertebrates besides ants and termites.
Echidnas are active both day and night.
Echidnas are solitary living except during the breeding season.
Echidnas breed during the winter.
An echidna lays only one single egg .
A female echidna carries her young in her pouch .
When the young starts growing spines, she digs a special nursery burrow put it in.
Echidnas can live to be 50 years old .