'How do you cuddle an echidna?'
This is my entry for the Daily Pet Photography contest hosted by @dpet
I asked you the question - How do you cuddle an echidna because, quite frankly, until recently, I did not think it was at all possible. How wrong can one be? All you need is a pair of thick (very thick) gloves (preferably blue ones) and voila! Loving an echidna is just so easy.......
This lady (below) was clearly enamored by her pet echidna and judging by the look on this ones face........admittedly, a face only a mother (or a very devoted owner) could love, he/she returned that love with utmost devotion.
Echidnas are classified as spiny anteaters, and part of their uniqueness is the fact that, although they are mammals, they lay eggs. They share this feature with the other only living monotreme – the platypus. They grow from 14 – 30 inches long and their weight varies from 5.5 lbs to 22 lbs and their spines can measure up to 2 inches in length.
These unique animals are found only in Australia and New Guinea and happen to be the most widely distributed native mammals in Australia. They thrive in alpine meadows, coastal forests and inland desert areas.
They are known to be solitary animals but are not territorial and are generally very happy to share their habitat with similar breeds. Echidnas are quite active during daylight hour, but during summer months will become nocturnal to avoid extreme heat. Their metabolisms are slow with body temperatures of 89 degree Fahrenheit (32 C) and these factors contribute to their longevity of up to 50 years.
Winter is definitely not their favourite season of the year and this is why they burrow deep to hibernate. It is interesting to note that no matter what tine of the year it is, echidnas can only reach REM sleep when their body heat sits around 77 F (25 C )
They do not have teeth and will only eat termites, ants and other invertebrates and favour beetle larvae. They use their strong claws to tear open logs to reach termites and use their long 7” tongues to scoop them into their mouths.
Their very prickly spikes are hollow quills, and they have an extra long claw on their second toe which enable them to groom their spines. Both the male and female species have pouches and they pick up vibrations they pick up vibrations via their sensitive noses and their hearing is very acute also.
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THANK YOU FOR VIEWING. HAVE A GREAT DAY.
Thank you @pixresteemer
I' m guessing she cared for wildlife in some capacity? As random cuddling is not encourage lol - no matter how cute they are. I love stumbling across echidnas - so shy.
Thank you @riverflows for your comments and dropping by. Much appreciated. Have a great week.
You too. I hope it is warmer where you are ! xx
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Thank you @riverflows It's winter here and quite cold at the moment but I don't mind that at all. 😊
Aww, how adorable!
Yeah, hmmmm, cutish....... Sort of. lol.
Wow, thanks for introducing me to this cute freakish species! Not surprised that it is related to the platypus, another of evolution's strange experiment (let's mix a duck, an otter and a beaver together, give him superpowers like electroreception and venom, and see what happens!).
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It was my pleasure to introduce this fascinating little fella to you @a0i You've got my imagination working in overdrive at the thought of mixing a duck and otter and a beaver together. 😊 Perhaps we could call it a Beaducktor??????? 😀
Many thanks for your visit and support. It is much appreciated.
This would be a good name! It has more panache than "platypus".
You cuddle it veeeeeeeeery gently! 😂😂😂😂 Australian animals are truly awesome!!
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Haha.......great advice. 😀 😀 😀 Veeeeeeeery gently is the way to go when it comes to cuddling an echidna. Australian animals are indeed awesome and I really enjoy taking photos of them at every opportunity. Thanks very much for dropping by. Greatly appreciated. 💐
Thank you for posting them, always great to see your photos!
Thank you for the compliment. Much appreciated.
What a cute little critter. We have a bigger version of an animal here called a porcupine.
Thanks for your comments Jo.
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I've never seen one of those before... It almost looks like the result of smashing a turtle, porcupine, and raccoon together!
Yes I agree. I had never seen one before either until I came across this one.
Cuddle it from a distance lolm
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That's one way of doing it. Either way it would be a challenge wouldn't it? 😊 Thanks for your input.