Walt Norwood, age 11, of Colfax Iowa,

Is the echidna a mammal?

A baby echidna is fed on its mothers milk. Therefore it must be a mammals In fact, along with the duckbilled platypus, he is classed as the simplest of all mammals.

Mammals are usually born as live, helpless babies. The echidna begins life as an egg, a rounds large yolked egg with a parchment‑like shell. It is more like a snakes egg than a bird egg.

Mrs. Echidna usually lays dust one egg at a dime, though once in a great while she lays two. She puts her precious egg into a pouch formed by a flap of skin over her tummy. After a few days in this warm, oozy cradle the egg hatches into a small furry echidna.

Mama wears a fur coat too, though, chances are, you would never notice it. For, poking up through the fur are long, sharp spines. In facts in his native home the echidna is sometimes called a porcupine. He is also known as the spiny anteater.

Junior Mays in Mamas pouch, feeding on her milk and growing strong. Soon some of his fur begins to get tough and hard. He too is growing a coat of protective spines. Mama becomes uncomfortable when Juniors spines poke into her pouch. She removes him and leaves him safely at home in a cozy burrow.

Junior is a very playful fellow and, when he has a twins the pair of them romp and frolic like puppies. He takes his time growing up and it is quite a while before Mama produces a new baby. When fully grown the young echidna will be about 20 inches long.

He has a longs slender nose, rather like a birds bill. His legs are too Short to be noticed and his feet are rather like spades. After ally he uses ahem as spades. The echidna is a great digger and burrower. When threatened ‑.is four feet go to work digging out dirt in all directions as the spiny back ':~sappears deeper and deeper into the ground.

The spade‑like feet are also used to break open the nests of ants and termites. As the termites. As the panic stricken insects scurry around, the echidna darts out his tongue and crushes them against the roof of his mouth. For he has no teeth.

Echidnas are found in Australia, Tasmania and New Guinea. The echidna of Tas.aania is a little larger and much less spiky than his Australian cousin. In fact, only a few spikes poke up from his thick dark fur. The echidna of new Guinea may be 30 inches long, ten inches longer than his Australian cousins and his long, slender beak bends in a curve. All three cousins are burrowing landlubbers and all of them live on a diet of ants and termites.