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Expedition 🇦🇺 Australia

Echidna in Australia

The spiny enigma — an egg-laying mammal with a beak, a pouch, and a tongue that flickers faster than a snake's.

Echidna

The species

The short-beaked echidna is one of only five monotreme mammals on Earth — it lays leathery eggs like a reptile, then nurses its puggle in a pouch. Covered in spines with a long snout and sticky tongue, it trundles through Australian bush probing for ants and termites.

Habitat in Australia

Forest, scrub, grassland, and desert across Australia and Tasmania suit short-beaked echidnas. They are active by day in cooler weather and at night in hot regions, foraging for ants, termites, and beetle larvae.

Where to spot one

  • Great Ocean Road

    Victoria

    Coastal eucalyptus forest and Kennett River's wild koalas — one of the most reliable places to spot them in the wild.

    View on map →Official site →

  • Kangaroo Island

    South Australia

    Kangaroos, koalas, and sea lions on an island sanctuary off Adelaide — compact Australian wildlife in one place.

    View on map →Official site →

  • Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park

    Northern Territory

    Red centre country where red kangaroos graze at dawn against the backdrop of Uluru.

    View on map →Official site →

  • Daintree Rainforest

    Queensland

    Ancient tropical forest at the edge of the Great Barrier Reef — cassowaries, tree kangaroos, and forest birds.

    View on map →Official site →

Conservation status

LC — Least Concern

Short-beaked echidnas are Least Concern and widespread across Australia. They are occasionally killed on roads but populations remain stable.

Keep exploring

Keep exploring

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