The Echidna is one of the world’s greatest survivors. They are the oldest surviving group of mammals on our planet, all the way back to the age of the dinosaurs. The platypus and the echidna are the only egg laying mammals in the world.
Not big bold or beautiful, the echidna is the ultimate survivor. It has a small roundish body covered with spines, and intelligent eyes set near the base of a leathery bird-like beak. The nostrils are at the tip with a tiny mouth opening on the underside. It has no teeth. The mouth only opens the width of the tongue - the tongue can extend up to 17cms while darting rapidly in and out gathering food such as grubs, earthworms and insect eggs.
They are independent little animals. They live solitary lives except during the breeding season. They use up to 200 hectares for a home range, which is large for an animal that generally weighs less than 5 kg.
They live up to 50 years.
They must be 5 to 7 years old before they have their first young and that they are not prolific breeders. Up to 50% of young may die reaching adulthood.
The survivors leave their home area when they are about a year old. Some travel over 45Kms before establishing a home range.
Low population numbers and dispersal of the young mean that they do not compete with each other for food or shelter.
It is hard work and you need a lot of luck to find an Echidna. They do not return to ‘home dens’ or burrows on a regular basis and they don't often use the same pathways. Also echidnas walk silently, blend in with their surroundings and rarely emit any sounds.
Because of their lifestyle, we have no idea how many echidnas are left. Historic data clearly show a decline.
Their survival is being jeopardised by introduced predators –foxes & dogs – and by competition from rabbits. A number of ‘quiet killers’ have become evident - herbicides, pesticides, and other chemicals enter the food chain and claim the lives of echidnas as well as other native species.
What are the continued survival chances of the echidna in an increasingly hostile world? One of the most outstanding characteristics is their individualism.
Different in so many respects from other mammals – an egglaying, slow reproducer, with low body temp, non aggressive and not territorial – the echidna still remains an undisputed giant among mammalian survivors.
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