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Topic: Echidna mammal

	! Rainforest Echidna ! Tropical Rainforest, North Queensland, Australia
		An echidna’s head and body length is between 30 and 45cm.
		The echidna is a toothless animal, it invades an ant or termite nest with its forepaws or snout and extends its long tongue into the chambers.
		Echidnas and platypuses are the only egg-laying mammals (monotremes) in the world.
	rainforest-australia.com /echidna.htm (828 words)

	Echidna - MSN Encarta
		The short-nosed echidna found in Australia is about 35 to 53 cm (about 14 to 21 in) long, exclusive of a short tail, and has a broad body mounted upon short, strong legs.
		A somewhat larger subspecies of the short-nosed echidna is native to Tasmania.
		In locations where ants and termites are abundant, the smaller echidnas make useful pets; they are long-lived and, despite their bristly coat, are gentle in disposition.
	encarta.msn.com /encyclopedia_761561096/Echidna.html (296 words)

	Echidna - Search Results - MSN Encarta
		Echidna, also spiny anteater, common name for a type of egg-laying mammal (Monotreme).
		Monotreme, common name applied to a group of egg-laying mammals, including the platypus, or duckbill, and the echidnas, or spiny anteaters....
		- spiny mammal: a spiny insect-eating mammal with a long snout and strong claws.
	ca.encarta.msn.com /Echidna.html (68 words)

	Short-beaked Echidna (Site not responding. Last check: )
		The Short-beaked Echidna has the largest prefrontal cortex with respect to body size of any mammal, it shows rapid eye movement during sleep, and its brain has been shown to contain a claustrum that is similar to placental mammals, linking this structure to their common ancestor.
		The Short-beaked Echidna is an iconic animal in contemporary Australia, notably appearing on the Australian five-cent piece (the smallest denomination) and on a $200 commemorative coin released in 1992.
		The Short-beaked Echidna has been included in several postal issues: it was one of four native species to appear on Australian postage stamps in 1974, where it was the 25 cent stamp; it appeared on a 37 cent stamp in 1987, and again in 1992 when it was on the 35 cent stamp.
	www.ipedia.net /english/Short-beaked_Echidna (2921 words)

	Fauna Rescue Of South Australia Echidna Page
		They are still Mammals meaning they are warm blooded, have a covering of hair and suckle their young on milk, but are different to other mammals in that they (like reptiles) hatch their young from a soft shelled egg.
		No one has ever worked out how the mother echidna gets the egg into the pouch but it is thought that she curls her body in such a way that the egg is transferred directly into the pouch.
		If an echidna is injured and needs rescuing and you are unable to pick it up due to it digging itself into the ground, use a fine spray mist bottle to wet it's head.
	www.faunarescue.org.au /echidna.html (743 words)

	The Echidna (Site not responding. Last check: )
		The monotremes, a group including the echidna and platypus are characterised by laying eggs and suckling their young in a pouch, an attribute defining them as marsupials.
		Even if echidnas are not seen, there is always plenty of evidence of their presence, with many scrapes, holes, diggings and other earthworks where they have been searching for termites.
		Echidnas do not have many predators due to their effective spiny defence, and are more likely to fall victim to traffic than foxes or dingoes.
	www.westernwildlife.com.au /western/mammals/echidna.htm (376 words)

	San Diego Zoo's Animal Bytes: Mammals
		Mammals are vertebrate animals that are endothermic, have hair on their bodies, and produce milk to feed their babies.
		Placental mammals are the largest group, and their young develop inside the mother’s body while attached to a placenta.
		There are more than 4,000 species of mammals, which taxonomists classify into different groups based on characteristics like their body structure, the number and type of bones, and the number and arrangement of teeth.
	www.sandiegozoo.org /animalbytes/a-mammal.html (433 words)

	DoAustralia - Fauna: the echidna
		Echidnas belong to a group of animals called monotremes, which are a type of mammal.
		The young echidna after leaving the pouch, it stays in the nesting burrow until it is six to eight months old.
		The baby echidna stays in the pouch, feeding the iron-rich pink milk until it is six months old, weighs about 400 grams and its spines have started to grow.
	www.doaustralia.com /Fauna/Echidna.htm (485 words)

	Echidna
		Echidna average body temp is normal at 32-34ºC and is variable on a daily basis, being warmer when active and cooler at rest, with a variation of some 6-8ºC..
		Echidnas start to enter torpor at around 22ºC. This ability to vary body temperature is an energy saving pattern rather than poor thermoregulation abilities often associated with a primitive animal.
		In a study by Griffiths M. et al (1990),indicate that echidnas on average consume about 50% ants and 50% termites and concluded that T.a.acanthion in a tropical habitat forages opportunistically so that the diet is largely a strait-forward reflection of the composition of the ground-layer and termite fauna.
	www.fauna.com.au /monotreme/Echidna.php (2344 words)

	Echidna - WikiFauna
		The Echidna (or affectionately known as the Spiny Anteater) is a primitive mammal.
		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.
		Echidna's have long sharp claws on their feet, and are approximately 35-50 cms long with a 10cm long tail.
	www.wikifauna.com /index.php?title=Echidna (174 words)

	Echidna (mammal)
		They feed by tearing open soft logs, anthills and the like, and using their long, sticky tongue to sweep up termites, ants and other small arthropods, which are crushed between the tongue and the roof of their mouth.
		The Short-beaked Echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus) is found in south east New Guinea and also occurs in almost all Australian environments: from the snow-clad Australian Alps to the deep deserts of the Outback: essentially anywhere that ants and termites are available.
		The Short-beaked Echidna is sparsely distributed and nowhere common; however it has a vast range, no serious predators, and there seems to be no sign of any threat to its continued survival.
	www.casimiro.com /wiki/en/wikipedia/e/ec/echidna__mammal_.html (551 words)

	The Echidna
		The echidna, of course, is a monotreme, or egg-laying mammal, and the platypus's nearest relative.
		This is the echidna's first line of defence when surprised on soft and workable soil, and in such ground it may disappear from view within a few minutes.
		So powerful are these quaint mammals, that zoo specimens have been known to dig their way out of a concrete-floored enclosure.
	www.wonderbookofknowledge.com /echidna.php (471 words)

	Echidna
		The Echidna found in Australia is the Short-beaked Echidna and along with the Platypus are the only members of the monotreme family which are Mammals that lay eggs and produces milk for its young.
		The Echidnas main requirement is a large supply of ants and termites so Echidnas are found all over Australia from the highlands to deserts to forests The Echidna has no fixed home except when the female is suckling its young.
		Echidnas then normally tears into the mound or nest with its sharp claws (front feet) and its snout exposing the ants or termites and then catching them with its fast flicking sticky tongue.
	home.iprimus.com.au /readman/echidna.htm (602 words)

	Rainforest Echidna
		The echidna is a toothless animal, it invades an ant or termite nest with its forepaws or snout and extends its long tongue into the chambers.
		The main difference between the two types of Echidna in Australia is that the Short-beaked Echidna eats ants and other colonial insects, and the Long-beaked Echidna forages in forest litter for earthworms and larger solitary insects.
		The short-beaked echidna is found in all habitats in Australia, from desert to snowy mountains to rainforest.
	www.species.net /Echidna.html (1214 words)

	UNSW Embryology- Echidna Development
		The echidna is a unique egg-laying mammal, the embryo is referred too as a "puggle" (not to be confused with the dog breed, produced by mating a Pug with a Beagle) and is not a common animal model of mammalian embryonic development.
		Marsupial mammals have relatively short gestation periods and give birth to highly altricial young that continue a significant amount of ‘fetal’ development after birth, supported by a highly sophisticated lactation.
		A combination of mammal, reptile, and marsupial, echidnas produce milk, but unlike mammals, they are egg-laying creatures and, like marsupials, they have a modified pouch for nurturing their young.
	embryology.med.unsw.edu.au /OtherEmb/echidna.htm (909 words)

	What is an Echidna?
		The echidna is the only known egg laying mammal aside from the platypus, to which it is somewhat related.
		All species of echidna look like a cross between a hedgehog and an anteater, and are often referred to as spiny anteaters.
		The baby echidna, called a puggle, will continue this unusual nursing until it is about a year old.
	www.wisegeek.com /what-is-an-echidna.htm (486 words)

	A mammal from Australia called the echidna. (Site not responding. Last check: )
		Solitary by nature, the echidna lives in an underground burrow, using its long, sticky tongue- which it can extend up to 18 cm to feed on ants and termites.
		Along with the platypus, the echidna belongs to the monotremes, or egg-laying mammals.
		After mating, the female echidna lays a single egg which she carries in a pouch on her belly.
	www.echidna.info (115 words)

	Animals: Mammals Echidna
		Echidnas are often called “spiny anteaters” because the upper-side of their body and tail are covered in long, sharp spines.
		Echidnas have small eyes that are well developed but not as useful while foraging in ant mounds or when under ground.
		Echidnas are difficult to study in the wild because they burrow in the ground, don’t follow a set pattern of behavior and can be active at any time (day or night).
	www.philadelphiazoo.org /index.php?id=3_1_1_24 (669 words)

	An Australian joke?
		When a Platypus specimen was first sent to England, the local scientists concluded that some smart-arsed Australian had tried to play a joke on them by sewing the feet and bill of a duck onto the body of a rat.
		Although the Echidna is a brave little character that wanders the countryside, the Platypus is shy and heads back to its burrow if it feels danger is at hand.
		Due to its bone structure as well as the its peculiar features, some zoologists have argued that the Platypus is the missing link between birds and the mammal like reptiles of the Triassic age of 190 million years ago.
	www.convictcreations.com /animals/platypus.htm (668 words)

	San Diego Zoo's Animal Bytes: Echidna
		The echidna (ih-KID-na), or spiny anteater, is an unusual mammal.
		The echidna at the San Diego Zoo is fed a “milkshake” made of ground-up leaf eater biscuits and dog kibble, with water added to form a thick paste to lick up.
		Then the mother puts the puggle into a burrow, where she will return to feed it every 5 to 10 days until it is big enough to go out on its own, at about 7 months old.
	www.sandiegozoo.org /animalbytes/t-echidna.html (884 words)

	Echidna Love Trains - June - Scribbly Gum - ABC Science Online
		Echidnas don't like to get hot and, depending on where they are in Australia and the time of the year, they'll change from day active to night active.
		Echidnas don't have teats for the hatchlings to attach to.
		On top of all this the prefrontal cortex of the echidna's brain is larger compared to the rest of its body than any other mammal including man. Usually the greater the volume of the this part of the brain, the 'more advanced' is the animal.
	www.abc.net.au /science/scribblygum/June2000/default.htm (2338 words)

	The Echidna
		Echidnas are between 35-45 cm in size and they can weight anything between 2-7 kg.
		Echidnas have a pointy snout and an extremely long sticky tongue to catch ants and termites.
		Echidnas have a long tongue that they use to lick up their prey.
	www.condorcet.com.au /_oz/marsupials/echidna.html (626 words)

	ham and echidna (Site not responding. Last check: )
		Mammals vary quite a bit in being influenced by their surrounding temperature, especially desert species like the echidna and aquatic species like the platypus.
		Actually, the fossil history of echidna is far from the blank you pretend it is Mr Ham.
		Echidna is one of the compelling cases evolutionists put forward as evidence of evolution!
	home.austarnet.com.au /stear/ham_and_echidna.htm (569 words)

	Stuffed Echidna from Stuffed Ark
		Echidna, also spiny anteater, common name for a type of egg-laying mammal.
		The short-nosed echidna found in Australia is about 14 to 21 inches long, exclusive of a short tail.
		The New Guinean echidna has a long, curved snout and grows as long as 30 inches.
	www.stuffedark.com /echidna.htm (87 words)

	Animal Adaptations - Monotremes
		The echidnas with the shorter snouts live in Australia and the lowlands of New Guinea and are called short-beaked echidnas.
		Echidnas protect themselves from danger by curling up into a ball to protect the soft part of their bellies where they are most vulnerable.
		Echidnas and other ant-eating mammals have a stomach with a special lining that can accommodate alot of dirt.
	www.uen.org /utahlink/activities/view_activity.cgi?activity_id=4280 (833 words)

	The echidna enigma ... and the platypus puzzle
		And if the echidna (pronounced ik-KID-na) regards you as a danger, it will abandon its meal of ants or termites, roll into a spiky ball, or wedge itself into a crack, or rapidly burrow straight into the soil until only its sharp spines are exposed.
		This has led to the classification of the echidna and platypus in a separate scientific category known as the monotremes (which means they have a single opening for the digestive and genitial organs).
		Echidnas and platypuses are so unique in their biology, life-style, and habitat compared to other mammals, reptiles, and birds, that there is no reason other than an evolutionary bias to think that their ancestors were significantly different to today's monotremes.
	www.answersingenesis.org /creation/v18/i2/echidna.asp (568 words)

	Echidna - Search Results - ninemsn Encarta
		Echidna, also called spiny anteater, common name for a type of egg-laying mammal (Monotreme).
		The short-nosed echidna found in Australia is about 35...
		The Gondwanan origins of Australia’s fauna are most striking among the mammals because of the absence of representatives of most of the orders found...
	au.encarta.msn.com /Echidna.html (85 words)

	Animal Planet :: Mammal Guide
		When the first duck-billed platypus arrived from Australia in Britain in 1798, it was assumed to be a fake, a fantastic creature with the small body of a mammal and the bill of a duck.
		Monotremes are sufficiently different in their morphology and evolution for systematists to have placed them in their own subclass, called Prototheria (See Mammal Orders) —despite controversial new DNA analysis that suggests monotremes may be more closely related to marsupials than previously thought.
		Echidnas live on land and eat termites and ants.
	animal.discovery.com /guides/mammals/body/class_monotremes.html (321 words)

	Wildlife of Sydney - Fact File - Short-beaked Echidna
		The Short-beaked Echidna is the only species of echidna in Australia and is easily recognised by its sharp spines, short legs and long snout.
		Like the Platypus, the Short-beaked Echidna is an egg-laying mammal or monotreme and lays one egg at a time.
		The Short-beaked Echidna has few natural enemies, but it may be killed by cars, dogs, foxes and occasionally goannas, and cats may take the young.
	faunanet.gov.au /wos/factfile.cfm?Fact_ID=296 (215 words)

	Short-nosed Echidna - National Zoo\| FONZ
		While long-nosed echidnas are endangered, their short-nosed cousins are not.
		Although echidnas are also known as spiny anteaters, they are a completely separate order of mammals.
		Additionally, echidnas may resemble hedgehogs and porcupines because of their spines, they are not related.
	nationalzoo.si.edu /animals/smallmammals/fact-echidna.cfm (297 words)

	Forests of New Guinea - Long Beaked Echidna - World Wildlife Fund
		The long beaked echidna is a large mammal with fur and spines of varying length that weighs between 13-35 pounds.
		The echidna does not have teeth, rather it has rows of spikes (horny teeth-like projections on the tongue) perfectly suited to its diet of earthworms.
		One of the island's largest surviving indigenous animals, the echidna has a highly protected status in PNG but it is still threatened by hunters (it is a highly prized game animal) and loss of habitat due to logging, mining and farming.
	www.worldwildlife.org /expeditions/newguinea/spec_lbe.cfm (294 words)

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