Species Tachyglossus aculeatus (Shaw, 1792)
Short-beaked Echidna
Generic Combinations
- Echidna aculeatus (Shaw, 1792).
- Tachyglossus aculeatus (Shaw, 1792).
Taxonomic Decision for Subspecies Arrangement
- Mahoney, J.A. in Walton, D.W. (ed.) 1988. Zoological Catalogue of Australia Volume 5. Mammalia. Canberra : Australian Government Publishing Service x 274 pp. [Date published 13/Apr/1988]
Introduction
Subspecies not identified in Mahoney (1988: 4), synonymies attributed to Mahoney in the same work.
Distribution
States
Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia
Extra Distribution Information
Including Kangaroo Is.; also Papua New Guinea (subspecies Tachyglossus aculeatus lawesii)
IBRA
ACT, NSW, NT, Qld, SA, Tas, Vic, WA: Australian Alps (AA), Arnhem Coast (ARC), Arnhem Plateau (ARP), Avon Wheatbelt (AW), Brigalow Belt North (BBN), Brigalow Belt South (BBS), Ben Lomond (BEL), Broken Hill Complex (BHC), Burt Plain (BRT), Central Arnhem (CA), Carnarvon (CAR), Channel Country (CHC), Central Kimberley (CK), Central Mackay Coast (CMC), Coolgardie (COO), Cobar Peneplain (CP), Central Ranges (CR), Cape York Peninsula (CYP), Daly Basin (DAB), Darwin Coastal (DAC), Desert Uplands (DEU), Dampierland (DL), Davenport Murchison Ranges (DMR), Darling Riverine Plains (DRP), Einasleigh Uplands (EIU), Esperance Plains (ESP), Eyre Yorke Block (EYB), Finke (FIN), Flinders Lofty Block (FLB), Flinders (FLI), Gascoyne (GAS), Gawler (GAW), Gulf Fall and Uplands (GFU), Geraldton Sandplains (GS), Great Sandy Desert (GSD), Gulf Coastal (GUC), Gulf Plains (GUP), Great Victoria Desert (GVD), Hampton (HAM), Jarrah Forest (JF), Kanmantoo (KAN), King (KIN), MacDonnell Ranges (MAC), Mallee (MAL), Murray Darling Depression (MDD), Mitchell Grass Downs (MGD), Mount Isa Inlier (MII), Mulga Lands (ML), Murchison (MUR), Nandewar (NAN), Naracoorte Coastal Plain (NCP), New England Tablelands (NET), Northern Kimberley (NK), NSW North Coast (NNC), NSW South Western Slopes (NSS), Nullarbor (NUL), Ord Victoria Plain (OVP), Pine Creek (PCK), Pilbara (PIL), Riverina (RIV), Sydney Basin (SB), South East Coastal Plain (SCP), South East Corner (SEC), South Eastern Highlands (SEH), South Eastern Queensland (SEQ), Simpson Strzelecki Dunefields (SSD), Stony Plains (STP), Sturt Plateau (STU), Swan Coastal Plain (SWA), Tanami (TAN), Tasmanian Central Highlands (TCH), Tiwi Cobourg (TIW), Tasmanian Northern Midlands (TNM), Tasmanian Northern Slopes (TNS), Tasmanian South East (TSE), Tasmanian Southern Ranges (TSR), Tasmanian West (TWE), Victoria Bonaparte (VB), Victorian Midlands (VM), Victorian Volcanic Plain (VVP), Warren (WAR), Wet Tropics (WT), Yalgoo (YAL) ; ACT, NSW, NT, Qld, SA, Vic, WA: Gibson Desert (GD), Little Sandy Desert (LSD)
Ecological Descriptors
Alpine, cave dweller, closed forest, crepuscular, hummock grassland, insectivorous, low open shrubland, low open woodland, low shrubland, low woodland, noctidiurnal, open forest, open heath, open scrub, predator, subtropical, tall open forest, tall open shrubland, tall shrubland, temperate, terrestrial, tropical, tussock grassland, woodland.
Extra Ecological Information
Seasonal breeder, oviparous.
General References
Abenspergen, M.A. 1988. Food preference of the echidna, Tachyglossus aculeatus (Monotremata: Tachyglossidae), in the wheatbelt of Western Australia. Australian Mammalogy 11: 117-123
Abensperg-Traun, M. 1989. Some observations on the duration of lactation and movement of a Tachyglossus aculeatus acanthion (Monotremata: Tachyglossidae) from Western Australia. Australian Mammalogy 12: 33-34
Abensperg-Traun, M. 1991. A study of home range, movements and shelter use in adult and juvenile echidnas, Tachyglossus aculeatus (Monotremata: Tachyglossidae), in Western Australian wheatbelt reserves. Australian Mammalogy 14: 13-21
Abensperg-Traun, M. 1991. Survival strategies of the echidna Tachyglossus aculeatus (Monotremata: Tachyglossidae). Biological Conservation 58: 317-328
Abensperg-Traun, M., Dickman, C.R. & De Boer, E.S. 1991. Patch use and prey defence in a mammalian myrmecophage, the echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus) (Monotremata: Tachyglossidae): a test of foraging efficiency in captive and free-ranging animals. Journal of Zoology, London 225: 481-493
Abensperg-Traun, M. & Steven, D. 1997. Ant- and termite-eating in Australian mammals and lizards: A comparison. Australian Journal of Ecology 22: 9-17
Augee, M.L., Beard, L.A., Grigg, G.C. & Raison, J.K. 1992. Home range of echidnas in the Snowy Mountains. pp. 225-231 in Augee, M.L. (ed.). Platypus and Echidnas. Mosman : Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales 296 pp.
Augee, M.L. (ed.) 1978. Monotreme biology. Proceedings of a symposium held in Sydney, May 1978. The Australian Zoologist 20: 1-257
Bakker, A.J., Parkinson, A.L. & Head, S.I. 2005. Contractile properties of single-skinned skeletal muscle fibres of the extensor digitorum longus muscle of the Australian short-nosed echidna. Australian Journal of Zoology 53: 237-240
Beard, L.A., Grigg, G.C. & Augee, M.L. 1992. Reproduction by echidnas in a cold climate. pp. 93-100 in Augee, M.L. (ed.). Platypus and Echidnas. Mosman : Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales 296 pp.
Bick, J.A.E. 1992. The meiotic chain of chromosomes of Monotremata. pp. 64-68 in Augee, M.L. (ed.). Platypus and Echidnas. Mosman : Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales 296 pp.
Dann, J.F. & Buhl, E.H. 1995. Patterns of connectivity in the neocortex of the echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus). Cerebral Cortex 5: 363-373
Divac, I., Holst, M-C., Nelson, J. & McKenzie, J.S. 1987. Afferents of the frontal cortex in the echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus): indications of an outstandingly large prefrontal area. Brain, Behavior and Evolution 30: 303-320
Divac, I., Pettigrew, J.D., Holst, M-C. & McKenzie, J.S. 1987. Efferent connections of the prefrontal cortex of echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus). Brain, Behavior and Evolution 30: 321-327
Finnie, E.P. & Thomas, D.E. 1982. Management of monotremes at Taronga Zoo, Sydney. pp. 1-3 in Evans, D.D. (ed.). The Management of Australian Mammals in Captivity. Proceedings of the Scientific Meeting of the Australian Mammal Society, Healesville, Victoria, February 1979. Melbourne : Zoological Board of Victoria 194 pp.
Grant, T.R. 1993. The past and present freshwater fishery in New South Wales and the distribution and status of the platypus Ornithorhynchus anatinus. The Australian Zoologist 29: 105-113
Green, B., Griffiths, M. & Newgrain, K. 1992. Seasonal patterns on water, sodium and energy turnover in free-living echidnas, Tachyglossus aculeatus (Mammalia: Monotremata). Journal of Zoology, London 227: 351-365
Gregory, J.E., Iggo, A., McIntyre, A.K. & Proske, U. 1989. Responses of electroreceptors in the snout of the echidna. Journal of Physiology 414: 521-538
Griffiths, M. 1989. Tachyglossidae. pp. 407-435 in Walton, D.W. & Richardson, B.J. (eds). Fauna of Australia. Mammalia. Canberra : Australian Government Publishing Service Vol. 1B 827 pp.
Griffiths, M., Greenslade, P.J.M., Miller, L. & Kerle, J.A. 1990. The diet of the spiny anteater Tachyglossus aculeatus acanthion in tropical habitats in the Northern Territory. The Beagle 7: 79-90
Griffiths, M., Kristo, F., Green, B., Fogerty, A.C. & Newgrain, K. 1988. Observations on free-living, lactating echidnas, Tachyglossus aculeatus (Monotremata: Tachyglossidae), and sucklings. Australian Mammalogy 11: 135-144
Griffiths, M., Wells, R.T. & Barrie, D.J. 1991. Observations on the skulls of fossil and extant echidnas (Monotremata: Tachyglossidae). Australian Mammalogy 14: 87-102
Grigg, G.C., Augee, M.L. & Beard, L.A. 1992. Thermal relations of free-living echidnas during activity and in hibernation in a cold climate. pp. 160-173 in Augee, M.L. (ed.). Platypus and Echidnas. Mosman : Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales 296 pp.
Grigg, G.C., Beard, L.A. & Augee, M.L. 1989. Hibernation in a monotreme, the echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus). Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology A 92: 609-612
Hughes, R.L. 1993. Monotreme development with particular reference to the extraembryonic membranes. Journal of Experimental Zoology 266: 480-494
Iggo, A, Gregory, J.E. & Proske, U. 1996. Studies of mechanoreceptors in skin of the snout of the echidna Tachyglossus aculeatus. Somatosensory & Motor Research 13: 129-138
Jones, R.C., Stone, G.M. & Zupp, J. 1992. Reproduction in the male echidna. pp. 115-126 in Augee, M.L. (ed.). Platypus and Echidnas. Mosman : Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales 296 pp.
Jorgensen, J.M. & Locket, N.A. 1995. The inner ear of the echidna Tachyglossus aculeatus : the vestibular sensory organs. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B 260: 183-190
Krubitzer, L., Manger, P., Pettigrew, J. & Calford, M. 1995. Organization of the somatosensory cortex in monotremes - in search of the prototypical plan. Journal of Comparative Neurology 351: 261-306
Mahoney, J.A. 1988. Tachyglossidae. pp. 4-6 in Walton, D.W. (ed.). Zoological Catalogue of Australia Volume 5. Mammalia. Canberra : Australian Government Publishing Service 274 pp. [4]
Murray, P. 1984. Furry egg-layers: the monotreme radiation. pp. 571-583 in Archer, M. & Clayton, G. (eds). Vertebrate Zoogeography & Evolution in Australasia — Animals in Space & Time. Carlisle : Hesperian Press.
Murtagh, C.E. 1972. A unique cytogenetic system in monotremes. Chromosoma (Berlin) 65: 35-57
Pridmore, P.A. 1985. Terrestrial locomotion in monotremes (Mammalia: Monotremata). Journal of Zoology, London A 205: 53-73
Regidor, J. & Divac, I. 1987. Architechtonics of the thalamus in the echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus). Brain, Behavior and Evolution 30: 328-341
Rowe, M.J. & Bohringer, R.C. 1992. Functional organisation of the cerebral cortex in monotremes. pp. 177-193 in Augee, M.L. (ed.). Platypus and Echidnas. Mosman : Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales 296 pp.
Siegel, J.M., Manger, P.R., Nienhuis, R., Fahringer, H.M. & Pettigrew, J.D. 1996. The echidna Tachyglossus aculeatus combines REM and non-REM aspects in a single sleep state - implications for the evolution of sleep. Journal of Neuroscience 16: 3500-3506
Smith, A.P., Wellham, G.S. & Green, S. 1989. Seasonal foraging activity and microhabitat selection by echidnas (Tachyglossus aculeatus) on the New England Tablelands. Australian Journal of Ecology 14: 457-466
Teahan, C.G., McKenzie, H.A. & Griffiths, M. 1991. Some monotreme milk 'whey' and blood proteins. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology. B. Comparative Biochemistry 99B: 99-118
Ulinski, P.S. 1984. Thalmic projections to the somatosensory cortex of the echidna, Tachyglossus aculeatus. Journal of Comparative Neurology 229: 153-170
Walter, L.R. 1988. Appendicular musculature in the echidna, Tachyglossus aculeatus (Monotremata: Tachyglossidae). Australian Journal of Zoology 36: 65-81
Wilkinson, D., Grigg, G.C. & Beard, L.A. 1998. Shelter selection and home range of echidnas, Tachyglossus aculeatus (Monotremata: Tachyglossidae) in the highlands of south-east Queensland. Wildlife Research 25: 219-232
Wrigley, J.M. & Graves J.A.M. 1988. Karyotypic conservation in the mammalian order Monotremata (subclass Prototheria). Chromosoma (Berlin) 96: 231-247
History of changes
| Published | As part of group | Action Date | Action Type | Compiler(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15-Oct-2010 | 26-Aug-2023 | MODIFIED | ||
| 12-Feb-2010 | (import) |