Please observe these teeny echidna puggles that've just been born
Echidnas are usually pretty spiky. They aren't the type of animal you'd normally want to pet.
But you'd have a hard time resisting with these three newly-born echidna puggles, which hatched at Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia back in August. Born to mothers Ganyi, Spike and Pitpa, it's the first birth of echidnas at the zoo in 29 years.
The puggles (yes, they are really called that), spend ten days inside eggs before hatching, then they're carried around by their mother in a pouch-like skinfold for up to two months.
These guys have only just opened their eyes and are starting to develop their famous spines. The trio of puggles are currently housed in nursery burrows at the zoo's breeding facility, where their mothers return to feed them every 3 to 6 days.
"All three mothers are doing an amazing job and tending to their puggles as needed. We have one mum, Spike, who is so attentive that she returns to feed her baby every second day," Taronga Zoo keeper Suzie Lemon said in a statement via email.
"A great deal of mystery still surrounds this spiny species. Echidnas are quite elusive in the wild, so it’s hard to study their natural breeding behaviours," Lemon said.
Look how adorably dopey they are. Squee!
Topics Animals
