Echidna - Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

# Echidna

### From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

? Echidnas
Western Long-beaked Echidna
Scientific classification

Kingdom: | Animalia
Phylum: | Chordata
Class: | Mammalia
Order: | Monotremata
Family: | Tachyglossidae Gill, 1872

Species

Genus Tachyglossus
T. aculeatus
Genus Zaglossus
Z. attenboroughi
Z. bruijnii
Z. bartoni

An Echnida looking for food

An Echidna is a monotreme that lives in Australia and in New Zealand. They form the family Tachyglossidae.

Echnidas have a long, tube-like mouth with a sticky tongue, but they are also covered in spines. They are also called spiny anteaters. Echidnas are monotremes, which means they have mammary glands, but lay eggs too.

The echidna has an unique way of protecting itself. With its long, sharp claws, they quickly dig a hole until only their spines are accessible. The predator will not be able to get to it without injuring itself. Spiny anteaters eat ants. They also eat other small insects. Echidnas pick up the bugs with their sticky tongues.

Look up Tachyglossidae in Wikispecies, a directory of species

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
Tachyglossidae
This short article can be made longer. You can help Wikipedia by adding to it.
Retrieved from "http://simple.wikipedia.org../../../e/c/h/Echidna.html"

Category: Monotremes

##### Views

- Article
- Talk
- Newest version

##### Search

##### In other languages

- Deutsch
- English
- Español
- Esperanto
- فارسی
- Français
- 한국어
- Nederlands
- 日本語
- Polski
- Português
- Русский
- Suomi
- Svenska
- ไทย
- Українська
- 中文