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Short-Beaked Echidna

Tachyglossus aculeatus

A spiny, egg-laying mammal of Australia and New Guinea that slurps up ants and termites with a long, sticky tongue.

🦔 Monotremes
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About the Short-Beaked Echidna

Short-beaked echidnas live in scrubland, deserts and mountain forests throughout Australia, including Tasmania, and on New Guinea. Their dark fur is almost hidden by 2-inch spines. They sniff out food with a long beak that can also sense the electric signals of insects, then tear into nests with sharp claws. They eat ants, termites and earthworms.[1]

Quick facts

Scientific name
Tachyglossus aculeatus[1]
Diet
Ants, termites and earthworms.[1]
Habitat
Scrubland, desert and mountain forest.[1]
Where it lives
Australia, including Tasmania, and New Guinea.[1]
Group life
Solitary.[1]
Babies
One egg; the baby, called a puggle, hatches in 10 days.[1]
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN Red List, assessed 2015).[2]

Fun facts

  • Echidnas are mammals that lay eggs.[1]
  • A baby echidna is called a puggle.[1]
  • An echidna's beak can sense electric signals from insects.[1]

Vocabulary

monotreme
A mammal that lays eggs, like an echidna or platypus.
puggle
A baby echidna.
quill
A stiff, sharp spine.
pouch
A pocket of skin on an animal's belly where babies grow.
least concern
A conservation label meaning a species is widespread and not at risk of dying out soon.

See it in person

Sources

  1. [1] San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. “Echidna.” https://animals.sandiegozoo.org/animals/echidna (accessed 2026-10-02)
  2. [2] IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. “Tachyglossus aculeatus (Short-beaked Echidna).” https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/41312/21964662 (accessed 2026-10-02)

Facts last checked 2026-10-02.