Register      Login
Australian Journal of Zoology Australian Journal of Zoology Society
Evolutionary, molecular and comparative zoology
REVIEW

Reproductive strategies of the short-beaked echidna – a review with new data from a long-term study on the Tasmanian subspecies (Tachyglossus aculeatus setosus)

Gemma Morrow A , Niels A. Andersen B and Stewart C. Nicol A C
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A School of Zoology, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tas. 7000, Australia.

B Discipline of Anatomy and Physiology, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tas. 7000, Australia.

C Corresponding author. Email: s.c.nicol@utas.edu.au

Australian Journal of Zoology 57(4) 275-282 https://doi.org/10.1071/ZO09037
Submitted: 6 April 2009  Accepted: 23 July 2009   Published: 26 October 2009

Abstract

The short-beaked echidna is the most widely distributed endemic Australian mammal, and echidnas from different geographic areas differ so much in appearance that they have been assigned to several subspecies. In this paper, we present data obtained from free-ranging echidnas in southern Tasmania, and compare this with studies from other parts of Australia. In Tasmania mating occurs between early June and mid-September, and throughout Australia the normal breeding season lies within these limits. In echidnas from the more easterly parts of Australia reproduction closely follows hibernation, with Tasmanian echidnas showing a significant overlap between hibernation and reproduction. There is intense competition between males, and female echidnas from Tasmania show multiple matings. There are significant differences between echidnas from different areas of Australia in the use of nursery burrows and maternal care. One of the most dramatic differences is in duration of lactation: echidnas from Kangaroo Island wean the young at 204–210 days, but in Tasmania weaning occurs at 139–152 days, even though the masses of the young at weaning are comparable.


Acknowledgements

We thank all those people who have assisted us in the field over the course of this study, particularly David Lovell, Anna Reye, Megan Richards, Uwe Rosebrock, Jutta Schmid, Jenny Sprent, Cécile Vanpe, Christina Vedel-Smith and Ros Wallace, and are grateful to the McShane family for allowing us continued access to their property. Thanks to Peggy Rismiller and Arthur Ferguson for providing unpublished data. This work was carried out under permit from the Tasmanian Department of Primary Industries, Water & Environment, and the University of Tasmania Animal Ethics Committee, and complies with the Tasmanian and the Australian Code of Practice for the Care and Use of Animals for Scientific Purposes (2004). We are grateful for financial support from the Australian Research Council, the University of Tasmania Institutional Research Grants Scheme, the National Geographic Committee for Research and Exploration, and the Holsworth Wildlife Research Endowment.


References

Abensperg-Traun, M. (1989). Some observations on the duration of lactation and movements of a Tachyglossus aculeatus acanthion (Monotremata: Tachyglossidae) from Western Australia. Australian Mammalogy 12, 33–34.
Beard L. A. , Grigg G. C. , and Augee M. L. (1992). Reproduction by echidnas in a cold climate. In ‘Platypus and Echidnas’. (Ed. M. L. Augee.) pp. 93–100. (Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales: Sydney.)

Bennett, G. J. (1881). Observations on the habits of the Echidna hystrix of Australia. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1881, 737–739.
Griffiths M. (1968). ‘Echidnas.’ (Pergamon Press: Oxford.)

Griffiths M. (1978). ‘The Biology of Monotremes.’ (Academic Press Inc.: New York.)

Griffiths M. (1989). Tachyglossidae. In ‘Fauna of Australia. Vol. 1B. Mammalia’. (Eds D. W. Walton and B. J. Richardson.) pp. 407–435. (Australian Government Publishing Service: Canberra.)

Griffiths, M. , Kristo, F. , Green, B. , Fogerty, A. C. , and Newgrain, K. (1988). Observations on free-living, lactating echidnas, Tachyglossus aculeatus (Monotremata: Tachyglossidae), and sucklings. Australian Mammalogy 11, 135–144.
Grigg G. C. , Augee M. L. , and Beard L. A. (1992). Thermal relations of free-living echidnas during activity and in hibernation in a cold climate. In ‘Platypus and Echidnas’. (Ed. M. L. Augee.) pp. 160–173. (Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales: Sydney.)

Harris S. , and Kitchener A. (2005). ‘From Forest to Fjaeldmark: Descriptions of Tasmania’s Vegetation.’ (Department of Primary Industries, Water and Environment: Hobart.)

Morrow, G. , and Nicol, S. C. (2009). Cool sex? Hibernation and reproduction overlap in the echidna. PLoS ONE 4, e6070.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | PubMed | Nicol S. C. , Morrow G. , and Andersen N. A. (2008). Hibernation in monotremes – a review. In ‘Hypometabolism in Animals: Torpor, Hibernation and Cryobiology’. (Eds B. G. Lovegrove and A. E. McKechnie.) pp. 251–262. (University of KwaZulu-Natal: Pietermaritzburg.)

Rismiller P. D. (1992). Field observations on Kangaroo Island echidnas (Tachyglossus aculeatus multiaculeatus) during the breeding season. In ‘Platypus and Echidnas’. (Ed. M. L. Augee.) pp. 101–105. (Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales: Sydney.)

Rismiller P. D. , and McKelvey M. W. (1996). Sex, torpor and activity in temperate climate echidnas. In ‘Adaptations to the Cold: Tenth International Hibernation Symposium’. (Eds F. Geiser, A. J. Hulbert and S. C. Nicol.) pp. 23–30. (University of New England Press: Armidale.)

Rismiller, P. D. , and McKelvey, M. W. (2000). Frequency of breeding and recruitment in the short-beaked echidna, Tachyglossus aculeatus. Journal of Mammalogy 81, 1–17.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | Taggart D. A. , Breed W. G. , Temple-Smith P. D. , Purvis A. , and Shimmin G. (1998). Reproduction, mating strategies and sperm competition in marsupials and monotremes. In ‘Sperm Competition and Sexual Selection’. (Eds T. R. Birkhead and A. P. Møller.) pp. 623–666. (Academic Press: London.)

Van Deusen, H. M. , and George, G. G. (1969). Results of the Archbold Expeditions. No. 90. Notes on the echidnas (Mammalia, Tachyglossidae) of New Guinea. American Museum Novitates 2383, 1–23.