LibGuides: Short-beaked Echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus) Fact Sheet: Managed Care

History of Managed Care

First exhibited in 1845 at the Zoological Gardens of London (Augee et al. 2006)
Longest lived individual was housed at the Philadelphia Zoo from 1903-1953 (Augee et al. 2006)

(Stephenson 2015a, b, except as noted)

1924: The first echidna arrived at the San Diego Zoo
- From the Sydney Zoo (Dolan 1998)
- Lived at the San Diego Zoo for 24 years (Dolan 1998)
1956: Two male echidnas arrived at the San Diego Zoo (Courtney 1993)
- Eddie and Victor lived in the Children’s Zoo for many years
- Victor was a popular ‘animal ambassador’
  - Believed to be a female up until the 1990s
  - Oldest mammal at the San Diego Zoo until he passed away in 2012; lived at the Zoo for 56 years
- Eddie passed away at age 27 from an unknown illness (Dolan 1998; Darce 2011)
2013: Four short-beaked echidnas debuted at the Conrad Prebys Australian Outback exhibit (Scott 2013)
- Two males: Didjeri and Eugene
- Two females: Dilly and Piney
2020: San Diego Zoo Safari Park's first hatching of an echidna

Relatively easy to maintain in managed care (Augee et al. 2006, except as noted)
- Precautions must be taken to ensure proper health and social environment, and to prevent escape
Activity levels do not appear to be influenced by temperature; remain primarily nocturnal (Brannian and Cloak 1985)

Echidnas are known as ‘escape artists’ (Augee et al. 2006)
A strong, determined animal (Augee et al. 2006)
- Capable of:
  - Moving heavy paving and rocks
  - Digging deep under fencing
  - Climbing trees and fences over 2 m (6 ft)
Transport and temporary housing (Augee et al. 2006)
- Care must be taken during transport to prevent escape and overheating
- Echidnas will remain calm and quiet for long periods, if provided with something to cover themselves with

Loose hierarchies form in managed care settings (Brattstrom 1973; Augee et al. 2006)
- No evidence that dominance hierarchies form in the wild
Body size influences dominance status; smaller individuals ‘yield’ to larger individuals; compete for shelter or sun-basking sites (Augee et al. 2006)

Replicating the natural diet of short-beaked echidnas (termites, ants, other invertebrates) in managed care is not possible in most situations (Stannard et al. 2017, except as noted)
Nutritional needs change throughout the year (Stannard et al. 2017)
Diets incorporating soil or plant material helps to produce firm feces (Stannard et al. 2017)
One example of a diet (suggested by Augee et al. 2006) contains pollard (fibrous outer covering of wheat grain) as a replacement for soil (ingested in the wild, aids digestion), meat meal or minced beef, and a liquid multivitamin

Until recent years, has been difficult and rarely successful (Boisvert and Grisham 1988; Augee et al. 2006; Wallage et al. 2015)
- Some zoos are having more success by providing breeding females with access to artificial nest burrow boxes (Ferguson and Turner 2013; Wallage et al. 2015; Andrea Wallage, personal communication, 2017, unreferenced)
  - Appears to provide a thermally stable microhabitat, similar to a burrow in the wild
Courtship is short in managed care, compared to courtship in the wild (Ferguson and Turner 2013)
Removal of males after fertilization appears to be important (SC Nicol, personal communication, 2017)

Natural foraging behaviors can be elicited by providing logs with ants inside (Boisvert and Grisham 1988) or fresh ant eggs (Kern 1949)

Victor the Echidna was a popular animal ambassador of the San Diego Zoo.

He lived at the San Diego Zoo for 56 years.

A short-beaked echidna inspects a dish of meal worms at the San Diego Zoo.