242 AUSTRALIAN AND TASMANIAN ANIMALS 



for themselves, and once more resumes her rambles in search of food, when the 

 pouch almost disappears, to develop again in the following year. 



Many of the young spiny anteaters after leaving the maternal pouch probably fall 

 victims to mammals like the thylacyne, which prey upon them, but their worst 

 enemy is man. Formerly it was only the Australian native who caught them, and, 

 in the same way as gipsies do with hedgehogs, rolled them in clay and roasted 

 them in the fire, but to the native is now added the naturalist and collector who 

 account for a considerable number. The foregoing account may be supplemented 

 by the following observations made by a well-known naturalist, Dr. R. Broom, 

 in the Taralga district of New South Wales in connection with the typical 

 E. aculeata : — 



" Although the animal has a wide range in the Australian continent, it is prob- 

 ably nowhere very common, its scarcity being due apparently more to the numbers 

 killed by the blacks for food than to natural enemies. Now, however, that the 

 aboriginal race is dying out, it is likely that the echidna will become more 

 numerous, and in the wild regions of the Blue Mountains it will probably long 

 have a retreat which will be away from the track of advancing civilisation. Most 

 of the specimens seen are those that have wandered from the wild regions of 

 mountain and gully into the cleared sheep-pastures or cattle-paddocks. When an 

 echidna is seen walking about, its movements recall those of the tortoise. The gait 

 is clumsy, and the limbs are moved with apparent mechanical deliberation. The 

 animal has evidently little feeling of danger, as if conscious of its own superiority 

 to all attacks. When undisturbed, it walks with its head well forward and the 

 spines quite flat along the back, occasionally lifting its snout high in the air, 

 sniffing, as if to try and catch the scent of ants carried by the breeze. When taken 

 into captivity, its bids for liberty are most persistent and rather annoying. A cage 

 is perfectly useless, as the animal at once tries to force a passage through the 

 wires. Unless the wires be firmly twisted together, as in wire netting, it is almost 

 certain that ere long the echidna, with its enormously powerful fore-limbs, will 

 have torn the wires apart and made good its escape. Should the wires prove the 

 stronger, the echidna, apparently indifferent to pain, will continue hour after hour 

 trying to force a passage, tearing the skin from the sides of its head and snout. 

 One specimen left in a box, with wooden spars nailed across the top, in a few hours 

 had wrenched off two of the spars and made its escape. After trying various 

 sorts of boxes, I succeeded in finding a satisfactory means of keeping the animal, 

 namely, a strong canvas bag. In this the echidna is powerless, as he can get no foot- 

 hold, and even though the bag be closed as tight as possible there is apparently 

 enough air admitted to keep the animal alive. 



" When an adult echidna is captured and placed in confinement, he will most 

 probably refuse all food or drink for some days. Usually a week will elapse 

 before he will condescend to take even water. So great is their power of en- 

 durance that they will keep in fairly good condition without food or drink for five 

 or six weeks. When once the captive can be induced to take water, it can be 

 comparatively easily tamed. Milk it becomes very fond of, and if finely minced 

 raw meat be mixed with the milk, a diet can be provided which is apparently well 

 relished, and on which the animal thrives. I have found it most suitable to give 



