Secrets beneath the spines: the echidna is another Australian wildlife enigma: an egg-laying, pouch-bearing, spiny mammal that few people ever see-and even fewer understand

摘要

Echidnas have outwalked, outwitted and outswum me. The first time I outwaited one and it looked me in the eye, I was hooked. The short-beaked echidna is a small, egg-laying mammal, a solitary master of camouflage, silent and fiercely individualisticin its habits. It doesn't travel on regular trails or have home dens, nor can it be attracted using calls or bait. Studying this incredible creature started as a challenge and became a passion, one that has consumed me since 1988, when I began my work on Kangaroo Island, South Australia. Winter on Kangaroo Island takes place between June and August. It's like spring in many parts of the northern hemisphere: cool, rainy days are interspersed with warm, sunny ones; small ground orchids appear, native shrubs burst into colourful bloom, trees put on new growth, birds start nesting - and male echidnas search for a mate. By the end of July, four males had been courting Big Mama on and off for three weeks. At last, she stopped ignoring them and lay fiat on the ground, allowing the males to dig around her and lift her tail, ready for breeding. As we had observed before, she mated with only one of the males. The next day, all the suitors left, and Big Mama was back to her solitary life.