echidna

noun echid·na \ i-ˈkid-nə \

Updated on: 8 Apr 2018

Definition of echidna

: a spiny-coated toothless burrowing nocturnal monotreme mammal (Tachyglossus aculeatus) of Australia, Tasmania, and New Guinea that has a long extensible tongue and long heavy claws and that feeds chiefly on ants; also : a related mammal (Zaglossus bruijni) of New Guinea having a longer snout and shorter spines

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Recent Examples of echidna from the Web

Working with the Taronga Zoo in suburban Sydney, Dr. Brandis has also tested the quills of captive and wild echidnas, in the hope of developing a similar tool that could identify animals that have been poached.

— New York Times, "Where Do Birds Flock Together? Australians Are Mailing In Feathers to Help Find Out," 21 Mar. 2018
Scientists say the samples can help them learn about echidna health, diet and stress levels.

— mike cherney, WSJ, "Scientists Want Regular People to Lend a Hand, Immediately Regret Asking," 8 Mar. 2018
Other notable animals include the platypus and echidna, both mammals that lay eggs.

— andrea rumbaugh, Houston Chronicle, "See unusual animals at the Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia," 12 Feb. 2018
After the kangaroos came milk formulas for echidnas (whose babies are called puggles), sugar gliders, wombats and other Australian native animals.

— serena solomon, New York Times, "Saving Koalas, and Other Marsupials, With Milk Almost as Good as Mom’s," 24 Feb. 2018
Fans of Sonic The Hedgehog are well acquainted with Knuckles, the red echidna made popular through a series of video games produced by Sega.

— brett molina, USA TODAY, "The Ugandan Knuckles, 'do you know de wey' meme explained," 9 Feb. 2018
The echidna, or spiny anteater, is a marvel of defensive self-preservation, from its impenetrable spikes to its amazing ability to breathe through bushfires.

— smithsonianmag.com, "Meet the Echidna, an Incredible, Fire-Proof Spiny Anteater," 30 Sep. 2017
Many birds lay white, unpigmented eggs—as do all lizards, turtles, crocodiles, and the only known egg-laying mammals, the platypus and the echidna.

— National Geographic, "Dinosaurs Laid Blue Eggs—And That's a Big Deal," 18 Sep. 2017
Scans his team has done of Australia's short-beaked echidna show a similar neural architecture to the thylacine, meaning that the brain circuits of these two animals could have evolved in a common ancestor more than 200 million years ago.

— ben panko, Smithsonian, "How Scientists Reconstructed the Brain of a Long-Extinct Beast," 19 Jan. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'echidna.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

There are two species of echidna. Both are egg-laying mammals that are stocky and virtually tailless. They have strong-clawed feet and spines on the upper part of a brownish body. The snout is narrow and the mouth is small, with a tongue that is long and sticky for feeding on termites and ants, their chief food. New Guinea echidnas are 18–31 in (45–78 cm) long and piglike. Valued for their meat, they are declining in numbers. Echidnas of Australia and Tasmania are 14–21 in (35–53 cm) long. Echidnas exude milk from mammary openings on the skin, and the young lap it up.