AKA the
Spiny Anteater.
Kingdom = Animalia
Phylum = Chordata
Subphylum = Vertebrata
Class = Mammalia
Subclass = Prototheria
All living prototheria are of the
Order Monotremata
Genera = Tachyglossus
They and the platypus make up all living monotremata (monotremes). The spiny anteater lives in Australia, Tasmania, and New Guinea. The female will lay one egg sometime around May. The egg is carried in the mother's pouch where it hatches. The young stays in the pouch until it is developed enough to survive on it's own (a few weeks). They look like hedgehogs with long noses, and as you might guess they eat ants, termites and other insects. They live in burrows and are quick diggers.
There are two species, Tachyglossus aculeatus and Zaglossus bruijnii (Long-beaked Echidna). The longed-beaked echidna has a longer snout and it's spines are much less noticable, mostly hidden beneth it's fur. The long-beaked echidna lives only in north-western New Guinea.