![]() Prior to 2007, no one had ever seen an echidna ejaculate. It is challenging to study echidna in the wild and they show no interest in mating while in captivity. The penis of the male echidna is 7 centimeters (2.8 inches) long when erect, and its shaft is covered with penile spines, which can be used to induce ovulation in the female. When not in use, the penis retracts into a preputial sac in the cloaca. Each time she copulates, she alternates the heads in groups of two. ![]() During mating, the heads on one side are “off” and do not increase in size the other two are used to release semen into the female’s two-branched reproductive tract. The first European drawing of an echidna was made in Adventure Bay, Tasmania by the third lieutenant of HMS Providence, George Tobin, during the second voyage of William Bligh’s breadfruit. At temperatures of 15 ☌ (59 ☏) and 28 ☌ (82 ☏), REM sleep is suppressed. Due to their low metabolism and accompanying resistance to stress, echidnas are long-lived for their size the longest recorded lifespan for an echidna in captivity is 50 years, with anecdotal accounts of wild individuals reaching 45 years.Ĭontrary to previous research, the echidna enters REM sleep, but only when the ambient temperature is about 25 ☌ (77 ☏). The neocortex constitutes half of the echidna’s brain, compared to 80% of the human brain. Male echidnas have non-venomous spurs on their hind legs. The reproductive organs also differ, but both sexes have a single opening called a cloaca, which they use to urinate, release their feces and mate. The sex of an echidna can be deduced from its size, as males are 25% larger than females. A female can weigh up to 4.5 kilograms and a male up to 6. The average lifespan of an echidna in the wild is estimated to be about 14-16 years. When swimming, they expose their snout and some of their spines, and are known to move into the water for grooming and bathing.Įchidnas and platypuses are the only mammals that lay eggs, known as monotremes At 33 ☌, the echidna also has the second lowest active body temperature of all mammals, after the platypus.ĭespite their appearance, echidnas are good swimmers, having evolved from platypus-like ancestors. The external ear is formed by a large cartilaginous funnel, located deep in the muscle. The ears are slits on the sides of the head that are not normally seen, as they are covered by its spines It feeds by tearing at soft logs, ant hills and the like, and using its long, sticky tongue, which protrudes from its snout, to pick up prey. Echidnas have tiny mouths and toothless jaws. Their claws on the hind limbs are elongated and curved backward to aid in digging. They use their electroreceptive beaks to detect earthworms, termites, ants and other burrowing prey.Įchidnas have short, strong limbs with large claws, and are powerful diggers. ![]() The short-billed echidna, which lives in a drier environment, has no more than 400 on the tip of its snout. Like the platypus, they are equipped with electrosensors, but while the platypus has 40,000 electroreceptors in its beak, the long-billed echidna has only 2,000. They have an elongated, slender snout that serves as a mouth and nose. ![]() Several cases of albino echidnas, with pink eyes and white spines, have been reported They usually have black or brown coloration. Superficially, they resemble South American anteaters and other spiny mammals such as hedgehogs and porcupines. ![]()
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