Monotreme
33 creative works found
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Short-beaked Echidna Tachyglossus aculeatus. Found Australia wide. This one was photographed in south-west Western Australia.
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Echidnas are toothless and feed almost exclusively on ants and termites. They are equipped with a long sticky tongue that extends perhaps 17 centimeters beyond the end of the snout. Long spines cover the body and fur is present between them. 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 specialized hairs within the pouch, where it suckles milk oozing from the mother’s mammary glands. 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. Males have a spur on the ankle of the hind leg but, unlike that of the platypus, it is not venomous Note the Spur in this photo
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Short-beaked Echidna Tachyglossus aculeatus. Also known as the Spiny Anteater. Echidnas are found Australia wide inhabiting a variety of habitats. This one was photographed in south-west Western Australia.
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Photographed at Healesville Sanctuary, Victoria, Australia.
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An Echidna looking for ants
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I saved this guy from being run over today. / So being grateful, I think he posed for this shot. He’s a Short-beaked Echidna , also called a Spiny Anteater (Tachyglossus aculeatus) Noojee, Victoria
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This echidna was found around 10 metres from our back fence at our Inglewood property in Central Victoria. He/she buried his/her nose into the ground when we approached for around 5 minutes before deciding we were harmless, checked us out then moved on. An amazing experience for both my partner and my kids who got to see a ‘wild’ native Australian who was just as curious about them as they were of him/her.
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When he/she finally realized we were not going to hurt it it finally raised its head and checked us out before wandering deeper into the bush. Its nose looks like a Cuban cigar!
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We met this little fella while bushwalking in the Cradle Mountain-Lake St. Clair National Park, Tasmania. Short-Beaked Echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus) / Echidnas and platypuses are the only monotremes – mammals that lay eggs – in the world. / Echidnas are common in the dry, open country of Tasmania’s east coast. They are also found in open heathlands and forests and can sometimes be seen slowly wandering along roadsides with their characteristic rolling gait. / Echidnas are shy and move slowly and carefully. Tread quietly and you may be able to get quite close. If disturbed, echidnas will lower their head and with vigorous digging sink rapidly into the ground, leaving only their spines exposed. On hard surfaces they will curl into a ball. / Echidnas have poor vision but a good sense of hearing and smell. They are toothless, preferring a diet of ants, termites and other small invertebrates that they catch with a long sticky tongue. / The cream-coloured spines, which reach 50 millimetres (two inches) in length, are in fact modified hairs and cover the entire body apart from the underside, face and legs. Insulation is provided by fur between the spines. Like the platypus, males have a venomous spur on their hind legs. / Usually one egg is laid at a time and carried in the pouch for 10 to 12 days. Young are fed with milk secreted from areas of skin inside the pouch. When the spines develop after two months, the young are left in a concealed nest during the day.
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Platypus Ornithorhynchus anatinus. Photo taken at Broken River near Mackay, Queensland.
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Platypus Ornithorhynchus anatinus. The Platypus has lustrous, dark fur which is soft, dense and water-repellent. Photo taken at Broken River near Mackay, Queensland.
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Platypus Ornithorhynchus anatinus. Photo taken at Broken River near Mackay, Queensland.
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Platypus Ornithorhynchus anatinus. One of Australia’s two egg-laying mammals, the other is the Short-beaked Echidna. They belong to their own little group called the Monotremes along with another echidna species from Papua New Guinea. Photo taken at Broken River near Mackay, Queensland.
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Platypus Ornithorhynchus anatinus. Photo taken at Broken River, Queensland.
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Matt, the Echidna. Healesville. We have 2 resident echidnas in our yard, though these two are at the sanctuary.
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Echidna – one of only two egg-laying mammals extant today. This one was a curious little thing.
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Just for the record I did not kick sand in its face…... The Echidna is a monotreme that lives in Australia. When it is attacked, the echidna will burrow into the ground or curl itself into a ball using its spines as a method of defence against the predator. The echidna’s spines cover the top of its body. Echidna’s have long sharp claws on their feet, and are approximately 35-50 cms long with a 10cm long tail. Their nose is very sensitive, they use this to find food, then they use their long sticky tongue to catch ants, worms and other such insects. Female echidna’s lay a single egg in their pouch. After ten days, the egg hatches and a puggle (baby echidna) is born. They are born blind and hairless, and consume milk from a gland within the pouch. After an average of four weeks, the puggle develops sharp spines, and must leave the pouch. This Echidna was enjoying a day at the beach on Comerong Island on the south coast of NSW.
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near Yanac, far Western Victoria, sept09
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An Echidna, an Australian native and who shares a unique trait with just one other animal, the Platypus. / They’re both monotremes, meaning they lay eggs and they have a pouch like a kangaroo. / The female Echidna will usually lay just one egg and deposit it in her pouch. When the young echidna, called a puggle, hatches, it suckles from teats in the pouch until it’s grown spines at which time mum thinks it’s a little uncomfortable and digs a nursery burrow for it. / The adults eat ants and termites digging for them with strong claws and then sucking them up with a sticky tongue. mmm yum!! / I found this one this morning on my property near Launceston, Tasmania. Canon 5D Mark II with EF 100-400mm IS L at 400 mm My personal website My Images Do Not Belong To The Public Domain. All images and writing are copyright © Bob Wickham. All Rights Reserved. Copying, altering, displaying or redistribution of any of these images without written permission from the artist is strictly prohibited.
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An Echidna, an Australian native and who shares a unique trait with just one other animal, the Platypus. / They’re both monotremes, meaning they lay eggs and they have a pouch like a kangaroo. / The female Echidna will usually lay just one egg and deposit it in her pouch. When the young echidna, called a puggle, hatches, it suckles from teats in the pouch until it’s grown spines at which time mum thinks it’s a little uncomfortable and digs a nursery burrow for it. / The adults eat ants and termites digging for them with strong claws and then sucking them up with a sticky tongue. mmm yum!! Near Launceston, Tasmania, Australia. Canon 5D Mark II with EF 100-400mm IS L at 400 mm My personal website My Images Do Not Belong To The Public Domain. All images and writing are copyright © Bob Wickham. All Rights Reserved. Copying, altering, displaying or redistribution of any of these images without written permission from the artist is strictly prohibited.
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One of the great delights of Tasmania was the wildlife (that continues to exist despite the clear felling that desecrates too much of our lovely Tasmania). / Photo taken with Sony Cybershot 4.1. Slight blur due to the fact that this fellow was busy hunting his dinner. / This lovely fellow has more than 50 quills
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