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The word
echidna comes from the ancient Greek mythology. The name echidna
in the greek mythology means “she viper”, it was called “Mother
of All Monster”. Hesiod a greek poet described Echidna as a
female monster. Echidna mated with Typhoneus who was in the
Greek mythology the final son of a Greek goddess, Gaia. Echidnas
make part of the Tachyglossidae family. Apart from the platypus,
the echidnas are the only surviving monotremes. Monotremes are
mammals but instead of giving birth they lay eggs. These mammals
are small covered with spines and hair. The Echidna resembles
the hedgehogs and porcupines. Echidna has a very small mouth and
a toothless jaw. The short-beaked echidna as on the above
picture is mostly found in the environment of Australia and New
Guinea. This echidna species is smaller than the Zaglossus and
has longer hair. The short-beaked echidnas will be mostly found
in areas where there are ants and termites, which is their main
food; the Zaglossus feeds themselves with insect larvae and
worms. The female echidna lays a single egg; the hatchings
procedure needs around ten days and the baby is called a puggle. |
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