The Beagle
Feb 5, 2019
What is a puggle? It is the name for a baby echidna or platypus.
The local WIRES group has taken into care two 4 month old echidna puggles over the last couple of months. Both were found wandering around the roads, looking disorientated and lost.
At four months of age and weighing just 500-600grams both should have been safely tucked into their burrows, waiting for their mother to return every 3-5 days to feed them milk. They were much to young to survive on their own. But these two became a bit too adventurous and exited their burrows and were unable to find their way back. One had been named Durras and the other Eden.
When they initially came into care with Sandy Collins, a local WIRES carer, they were fed every 2-3 days a specially formulated echidna milk (yes there is such a thing) and kept indoors.
Now both are over 1kg and six months of age, they are outside in the special echidna enclosure getting used to the sights and sounds and being fed a special meat/milk mix. Eventually they will need to forage and dig for their own food which will consist mainly of termites and ants. This is where we need your help.
Their carer is asking anyone preferably around Batemans Bay with rotten wood pieces (like those in the photo) that are small enough for a lady to lift to make contact on wiresmidsouthcoast@gmail.com
The echidnas will be released together at approximately 8 months of age back near where they came from.
If you see an injured, orphaned or sick native animal, please call WIRES on 1300 094 737
Photos: Sandy Collins
The types of wood we are looking for
Durras (the more adventurous sticky beak) and Eden (who is shy and nervous and also has lovely hot pink nail polish on his spines so His carer can tell the difference between them when they are fed and weighed).
Durras and Eden in the background
Durras in his indoor burrow meeting Mags the soft released magpie
Durras in the special echidna enclosure
Durras at 5 months old