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Echidnas
Sometimes known as the spiny anteater, the echidna is an egg-laying mammal of Australia and New Guinea. It has adapted to living in a variety of habitats, from deserts to mountains, as long as there is a ready source of its favorite food of termites. Questions and answers about echidnas can be found here.
315 Questions
How did echidnas get their spikes?
Echidnas are not born with spines (as they are known, rather than spikes). The spines begin to grow after a few weeks, and are quite sharp by the time the baby echidna is three to four months old.
An echidna is of the Phylum Chordata, Class Mammalia, Order Monotremata.
Where do echidnas get glucose from in the wild?
Echidnas are monotremes that primarily live in Australia. They use their sense of smell to find food and get glucose and other nutrients from ants and termites, among other things.
How did Knuckles the Echidna get his knuckles?
It hasn't been said if Knuckles had anything special done to obtain his knuckles, most likely, he was born with it. Much like Sonic was born with his super speed.
See what happend in knuckles comics.
What are some functional adaptations of the echidna?
The echidna is an egg-laying mammal of Australia and New Guinea. Adaptations of the echidna include:
- A long tongue with sticky saliva, with which it eats termites and ants.
- A long snout which makes it easy for the echidna to burrow for ants, termites and worms.
- During breeding season, the female echidna develops a pouch, where she lays and incubates her egg. Although the pouch is little more than a fold of skin, it protects the egg from would-be predators such as goannas.
- The echidna has sharp claws for digging, and this ability to dig effectively is helped by its compact, muscular body shape and strong forelegs. When threatened, they can dig very, very quickly into the earth, disappearing horizontally, leaving only their quills exposed while they burrow.
- The echidna is very adaptable, living in a wide variety of climates and environments, from sub-alpine regions to arid semi-desert - wherever there are termites and ants. It has adapted surprisingly well to European settlement in Australia.
- Echidnas burrow as a protective defence, leaving only the spines exposed to the potential predator.
- Echidnas are able to tolerate high levels of carbon dioxide, a necessity for an animal which burrows for protection (and sometimes for food). Because of this, they can also tolerate lower oxygen levels, and this is useful when bushfires occur.
- When flash floods occur, echidnas can dive underwater, and as they do so, their heart rate drops, which saves oxygen needed by the brain and the heart.
A female echidna lays her egg directly into a pouch on her abdomen.
During breeding season, the female develops a rudimentary pouch which is really just a flap of skin. When it comes time to lay her egg, she curls tightly into a ball and lays it directly in this pouch, where it is incubated for around 10 days. The young emerge blind and hairless, and stay in the pouch, suckling for two to three months. The young echidna is transferred to a burrow when it begins to develop sppines.
Do any mammals lay eggs except platypuses and echidnas?
There are two egg-laying mammals. The platypus and the echidna are both egg-laying mammals, or monotremes.They are still classified as mammals because they feed their young on mothers' milk - a characteristic unique to mammals alone.
There are just three known species of egg-laying mammals, or monotremes. They are the platypus and short-beaked echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus) of Australia, and the long-beaked echidna (Zaglosssus bruijni) of Papua New Guinea. The echidna is sometimes called the spiny anteater, and there are several sub-species of the long-beaked echidna: the Western long-beaked echidna, Sir David's long-beaked echidna and the Eastern long-beaked echidna.
No. Echidnas are native to Australia and the island of New Guinea. They do not live in the US. Spiny mammals which live in the US are placental mammals, and not at all related to the echidna, which is a monotreme, or egg-laying mammal.
How old is Julie-su the echidna?
she is 16 years old in both the Knuckles the Echidna and Sonic the Hedgehog comics. in Sonic the Hedgehog 25 Years Later (where it shows everyone in their future reference) she is 41 years old. & in Sonic Universe 30 Years Later she is 46 years old
Echidnas eat by using their long, sticky tongues to capture termites and ants. This is why they are sometimes called "spiny anteaters". The echidna gained its scientific name of Tachyglossus, which means "fast tongue", because it can flick its tongue in and out up to 100 times per minute.
It is also a very tenacious eater, as it digs determinedly into termites' and ants' nests. It then proceeds to stick its sticky tongue as far as it can into the nests, getting as many ants as it can each time.
How many babies can echidnas have?
Echidna babies are not born: they are hatched, as echidnas are monotremes, i.e. egg-laying mammals. The female echidna lays a single egg in the rudimentary pouch she develops during breeding season.
There is a belief that echidna young are called "puggles". Even certain government wildlife departments are guilty of perpetuating this myth. This misnomer developed and spread by the appearance of a soft toy, called a puggle, which resembled a baby echidna.
Does a spiny anteater have scales?
No. The spiny anteaters more correctly known as an echidna, is a mammal, and mammals do not have scales. Mammals have skin and hair/fur.The echidna has fur and spines. These spines are actually specialised tough, hollow hair follicles attached to muscles so the evhidna can raise them in defence.
What is the climate and requirements of the echidna?
Echidnas are found throughout most of Australia, and are highly adaptable to a wide range of climates and environments. They live anywhere from dry bushland and woodlands, to snowy mountains, hot sandy plains, heath, grasslands, semi-arid environments and deserts. Echidnas can be found wherever there are termites and ants.
The echidna found throughout Australia is the short-beaked echidna. It is also found in the lowlands of southeast New Guinea. The long-beaked echidna is a rarer species, found only in New Guinea. It ranges from low-level coastal regions to tropical rainforests in mountainous areas.
Echidnas like to burrow into termite mounds and eat the termites.
They also break open non-termite ant nests and eat eggs/ adults/ larvae.
Is an echidna the only egg laying marsupial?
The echidna is a monotreme, which is an egg-laying mammal. Most mammals give live birth, but only the echidna and platypus are egg-laying mammals.
Yes he can.But only on angle island or near the master emarald.
Why are long beak echidnas endangered?
No. The short-beaked echidna of Australia is highly adaptable to a variety of conditions, so it is one of the Australian native animals which has been least affected by European settlement and the associated problems of habitat loss (unlike the long-beaked echidna of New Guinea). The echidna is currently listed as "common" throughout Australia and its conservation status is not listed as endangered.
It is a remarkably adaptable creature which can live wherever there are termites or ants.
The echidna is less affected by habitat loss than many other species, as it does not need a specialised environment, just a good supply of ants and termites. There are areas of Australia where echidnas were once common, but have not been sighted in years. The biggest threats are dogs and cars. However, the echidna still enjoys a healthy population in many less urbanised areas.
Natural predators to the echidna are dingoes, and goannas and snakes may prey on young echidnas, sometimes taking them from their burrows.
What is the size of an echidna?
A fully grown short-beaked echidna varies in size from 35 to 53 cm. Males weigh about 6 kilograms, while females have a mass of around 4.5 kilograms.
Long-beaked echidnas are larger. Their body length may be from 60 - 100 cm in length, and they may weigh between 4.2 and 9.1 kg.
Does Knuckles the Echidna have super speed?
He isn't as fast as Sonic, but he can glide and Sonic cant :3
How does an echidna get its food?
Short-beaked echidnas feed on termites, and occasionally ants, while Long-beaked echidnas eat earthworms, beetles and moth larvae. Because of their spines, there are few animals willing to eat adult echidnas. Natural predators of juvenile echidnas are goannas, pythons and dingoes, while the introduced fox has also become a major predator.
