Short-beaked Echidna
Dug In
Ellura
Short-beaked Echidna
Face
 
                      
Short-beaked Echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus)Class: Animals (Animalia) - Chordates (Chordata) - Mammals (Mammalia)
Order: Egg Laying Mammals (Monotremata)
Family: Echidna (Tachyglossidae)     iNaturalist Observation
Species: Short-beaked Echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus)
This Photo:     Back

Thank you Jane Widness for confirming the id of this species for us

General Species Information:
Found on Ellura (in the Murray Mallee, SA), the Adelaide Hills, the Riverland and elsewhere
Covered in sharp spines. In defence will wedge themselves under bushes (in this case rocks) or, if out in the open, dig themselves down by pushing soil out the side.
Their spines are dark grey and light brown

Copyright © 2012-2024 Brett & Marie Smith. All Rights Reserved. Photographed 11-Sep-2012
This species is classed as LC (Least Concern) in the Murray Mallee, SA, by DENR (Regional Species Status Assessments, July 2010)