> Male echidnas have a four-headed penis. During mating, the heads on one side "shut down" and do not grow in size; the other two are used to release semen into the female's two-branched reproductive tract. Each time it copulates, it alternates heads in sets of two. When not in use, the penis is retracted inside a preputial sac in the cloaca. The male echidna's penis is 7 centimetres (2.8 in) long when erect, and its shaft is covered with penile spines. These may be used to induce ovulation in the female.
A popular pub-trivia question is how many types of (living) monotremes are there - two (echidna and platypus).
However if the question is how many (living) monotreme species - then (well, up until now) the answer was four - the platypus, plus three species of echidna (Western, Sir David's, and Eastern).
Ah, thanks - I hadn't gone reading other news sites about this article, and had assumed GP was referring TFA, but couldn't see anything that might have inspired that comment.
Though I did note that TFA used the misleading (or simply wrong) phrase:
"A different echidna species is found throughout Australia and lowland New Guinea."
Very tough, and they hang on tight to the ground when you go to rescue one that's in a dangerous place. But possibly the only Australian native animal that you don't have to worry about being bitten, kicked, clawed or envenomed.
They're rather delightful. I went into the NSW bush and was disappointed at the lack of snakes and spiders the size of dinner plates, but I saw an echnida doing its own thing and spent half an hour just watching its slow and methodical path.
Strange to see West Papua plainly described as Indonesia.
It’s a great video. The feeling of euphoria is very real and in the vast and in the isolated jungles of Maritime South East Asia there is a little thrill knowing just how isolated you are.
On an island. In a jungle. Miles from the airport via river and foot. On a mountain.
Is the strange part that they used the (politically designated) country name rather than the (geographically oriented) island name? This seems normal to me, as journalists frequently describe locations by political names.
Who calls the area West Papua? The Indonesians seem to refer to it as "Western New Guinea", and "Papua" seems to be an antiquated term used to refer to some part(s) of the island of New Guinea.
It is a politically fraught issue because there is a long-running independence movement,[1] which the parent comment may have been obliquely referring to.
Given the geography of Indonesia, it seems necessary to use more specific place names, like we do for Borneo or Galapagos. The term 'Indonesian' becomes meaningless in many contexts because the scope is so vast.
When I was in Borneo (the only island in the region with three countries occupying parts of it), unless what we were doing was related to a national government, we said Borneo. When my colleagues who were working in Sulawesi referred to their work, I never once heard “Indonesia”.
Yet, and I have seen this story a few times now, it has exclusively been with the term Indonesia.
With a country as big and diverse as Indonesia the island/islands one is working on does matter.
So it seems deliberate to avoid naming the geographic term. And it is controversial.
Echidnas are known to essentially everyone in Australia. I would say most bushwalkers I know have seen them before as they are not difficult to find. It surprises me that they are not so well known outside Australia.
> The echidna is embedded in the local culture, including a tradition that states conflicts are resolved by sending one party to a disagreement into the forest to search for the mammal and another to the ocean to find a marlin, according to Yongsu Sapari elders cited by the university. Both creatures were seen as so difficult to find that it would often take decades or a generation to locate them. But once found, the animals symbolized the end of the conflict and a return to harmonious relationships.
If only all worldly conflicts could be resolved so peacefully.
Apparently nobody has ever been able to persuade any Echidna species to breed in captivity, so capturing any would reduce the chances for the species as a whole
I hope Indonesians start appreciating more what they have.
Although I doubt this is possible without significantly improving their living standard first.
There is open wildlife trade on the Sunday market near my place. Birds, monkeys, lizards, snakes, sugar gliders, and some unknown to me "things".
The nearest police office is about 20 meters from it.
56 comments
[ 4.5 ms ] story [ 93.0 ms ] threadhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Echidna
It's too bad population seems to crowd out the majority of wildlife on the ground.
If it wasn't for birds, a majority of people wouldn't see much backyard wildlife, ever.
https://ielc.libguides.com/sdzg/factsheets/short-beaked-echi...
I had to rescue a horny short nosed one which had trapped itself between gutters on a high speed road while looking for a mate a few years ago
These things are STRONG. The spikes aren’t much of a concern if you’re trying to pick one up, but it’s essentially a sphere of pure muscle and bones
Highlight of my Australia Zoo visit was seeing a zookeeper holding an echidna like a baby and feeding her honey.
Love a good dangling modifier. Did you end up finding your mate?
Hang on, which are you calling the fourth?
A popular pub-trivia question is how many types of (living) monotremes are there - two (echidna and platypus).
However if the question is how many (living) monotreme species - then (well, up until now) the answer was four - the platypus, plus three species of echidna (Western, Sir David's, and Eastern).
"Of the four echidna species three have long beaks, with the Attenborough echidna, and the western echidna considered critically endangered."
We need references stay!
Though I did note that TFA used the misleading (or simply wrong) phrase:
"A different echidna species is found throughout Australia and lowland New Guinea."
that's kind of how handling a large male basset hound is.
It’s a great video. The feeling of euphoria is very real and in the vast and in the isolated jungles of Maritime South East Asia there is a little thrill knowing just how isolated you are.
On an island. In a jungle. Miles from the airport via river and foot. On a mountain.
Yeah I did a double take on this too.
Who calls the area West Papua? The Indonesians seem to refer to it as "Western New Guinea", and "Papua" seems to be an antiquated term used to refer to some part(s) of the island of New Guinea.
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_Papua_Movement
The natives of West Papua who are being genocided out of existence by their colonial overlords in Indonesia.
Yet, and I have seen this story a few times now, it has exclusively been with the term Indonesia.
With a country as big and diverse as Indonesia the island/islands one is working on does matter.
So it seems deliberate to avoid naming the geographic term. And it is controversial.
[0] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wallace_Line
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Papua_(province)
[0] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knuckles_the_Echidna
If only all worldly conflicts could be resolved so peacefully.
Yeeeash...
Merdeka!
There is open wildlife trade on the Sunday market near my place. Birds, monkeys, lizards, snakes, sugar gliders, and some unknown to me "things".
The nearest police office is about 20 meters from it.