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Journal articles on the topic "Echidna"

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Koh, Jennifer M. S., Leesa Haynes, Katherine Belov, and Philip W. Kuchel. "L-to-D-peptide isomerase in male echidna venom." Australian Journal of Zoology 58, no. 5 (2010): 284. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/zo10045.

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The monotremes (the echidnas and the platypus) display both mammalian and reptilian features. Male monotremes have a bilateral crural gland that is connected via a duct to a spur on each hind limb. Male echidnas appear not to use their spurs as weapons in aggressive acts, but the crural system may have a role in reproductive behaviour because it appears only to be active during the breeding season. The secretions produced by the echidna’s crural gland have not hitherto been biochemically or pharmacologically characterised. We used reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) to separate the components of echidna venom and compared the chromatograms with those from platypus venom. The echidna venom appears to contain fewer proteins and peptides than platypus venom; however, it appears to have defensin-like peptides that behave similarly on RP-HPLC to those in platypus venom. Like platypus venom, echidna venom has peptidyl aminoacyl l/d-peptide isomerase activity. An RP-HPLC-based assay showed that the second amino acid residue, of a probe synthetic hexapeptide, was converted into the d-form, when incubated with echidna venom.
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Dundas, Shannon J., Lara Osborne, Anna J. M. Hopkins, Katinka X. Ruthrof, and Patricia A. Fleming. "Bioturbation by echidna (." Australian Journal of Zoology 69, no. 5 (August 3, 2022): 197–204. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/zo22019.

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Bioturbation by digging animals is important for key forest ecosystem processes such as soil turnover, decomposition, nutrient cycling, water infiltration, seedling recruitment, and fungal dispersal. Despite their widespread geographic range, little is known about the role of the short-beaked echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus) in forest ecosystems. We measured the density and size of echidna diggings in the Northern Jarrah Forest, south-western Australia, to quantify the contribution echidna make to soil turnover. We recorded an overall density of 298 echidna diggings per hectare, 21% of which were estimated to be less than 1 month old. The average size of digs was 50 ± 25 mm in depth and 160 ± 61 mm in length. After taking into account seasonal digging rates, we estimated that echidnas turn over 1.23 tonnes of soil ha−1 year−1 in this forest, representing an important role in ecosystem dynamics. Our work contributes to the growing body of evidence quantifying the role of these digging animals as critical ecosystem engineers. Given that the echidna is the only Australian digging mammal not severely impacted by population decline or range reduction, its functional contribution to health and resilience of forest ecosystems is increasingly important due to the functional loss of most Australian digging mammals.
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Frappell, P. B., C. E. Franklin, and G. C. Grigg. "Ventilatory and metabolic responses to hypoxia in the echidna, Tachyglossus aculeatus." American Journal of Physiology-Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology 267, no. 6 (December 1, 1994): R1510—R1515. http://dx.doi.org/10.1152/ajpregu.1994.267.6.r1510.

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Oxygen consumption (VO2), CO2 production (VCO2), and minute ventilation (VE) together with breathing pattern were measured in echidnas during normoxia and hypoxia. In normoxia, VO2, VCO2, and VE were all found to be approximately 30% of the allometric prediction for a eutherian. As a consequence VE/VO2 and VE/VCO2 are as predicted for a mammal. This is in contrast to previous reports on the echidna in which the VE was shown to be low and the echidna, subsequently, to be in a state of hypoventilation. It is possible that the difference between this and previous studies is related to the resting state of the echidna; echidnas in this study adopted a curled-up "sleeping" posture, and measurements were made without tactile disturbance. Breathing pattern was typical of a semifossorial species in that inspiration time to total breath time was short when compared with the normal eutherian value. In graded hypoxia VE increased [threshold fractional concentration of inspired O2 (FIO2) = 0.125], predominantly the result of changes in frequency achieved through a shortening in expiration time. In acute hypoxia (FIO2 = 0.10) VE/metabolic rate showed a tendency to increase, mainly because of the increase in VE. Approximately 50% of the increase in VE could be attributed to the 25% increase in VO2 and VCO2 that occurred in acute hypoxia. Given that the general mammalian response to hypoxia is a drop in metabolic rate, possible reasons as to why the echidna does not decrease metabolic rate in hypoxia are discussed.
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Perry, Tahlia, Deborah Toledo-Flores, Wan X. Kang, Arthur Ferguson, Belinda Laming, Enkhjargal Tsend-Ayush, Shu L. Lim, and Frank Grützner. "Non-invasive genetic sexing technique for analysis of short-beaked echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus) populations." Reproduction, Fertility and Development 31, no. 7 (2019): 1289. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/rd18142.

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Identifying male and female echidnas is challenging due to the lack of external genitalia or any other differing morphological features. This limits studies of wild populations and is a major problem for echidna captive management and breeding. Non-invasive genetic approaches to determine sex minimise the need for handling animals and are used extensively in other mammals. However, currently available approaches cannot be applied to monotremes because their sex chromosomes share no homology with sex chromosomes in other mammals. In this study we used recently identified X and Y chromosome-specific sequences to establish a non-invasive polymerase chain reaction-based technique to determine the sex of echidnas. Genomic DNA was extracted from echidna hair follicles followed by amplification of two Y chromosome (male-specific) genes (mediator complex subunit 26 Y-gametolog (CRSPY) and anti-Müllerian hormone Y-gametolog (AMHY)) and the X chromosome gene (anti-Müllerian hormone X-gametolog (AMHX)). Using this technique, we identified the sex of 10 juvenile echidnas born at Perth Zoo, revealing that eight of the 10 echidnas were female. Future use of the genetic sexing technique in echidnas will inform captive management, continue breeding success and can be used to investigate sex ratios and population dynamics in wild populations.
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Lunn, Tamika J., Stewart C. Nicol, Jessie C. Buettel, and Barry W. Brook. "Population demography of the Tasmanian short-beaked echidna (." Australian Journal of Zoology 69, no. 3 (March 15, 2022): 80–91. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/zo21037.

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Deriving estimates of demographic parameters and the processes driving them is crucial for identifying wildlife management options. The short-beaked echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus) is the most widely distributed native Australian mammal, yet little is known of its population dynamics due to its cryptic nature. Consequently, assessment of the impacts of climate and threats on echidna populations has been difficult. We analyse 19 years (1996–2014) of mark–recapture data to estimate survival and reproductive rates of a Tasmanian population of short-beaked echidna, and to evaluate the influence of regional weather patterns on its demographics. Population size showed high year-to-year variation, ranging from 1 to 40 echidnas km2 across the study area. Known-fate modelling of radio-tracked individuals suggested that climatic conditions impacted survival; average longevity was estimated at 16.7 years but only 4.8 years when the total spring/summer rainfall was below 125 mm, and 6.25 in years when temperatures more frequently exceeded 32°C. Recruitment, estimated from Pradel analyses, was low in the population (β = 0.08) and not significantly affected by climate. These results are the first quantitative estimates of climate effects, survival, and recruitment for this species, and suggest that climate-enhanced drying and temperature increase would pose a threat to echidna populations in Tasmania.
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Harris, Rachel L., Noel W. Davies, and Stewart C. Nicol. "Identification of desmostanol as a novel vertebrate sterol in short-beaked echidna secretions." Australian Mammalogy 35, no. 2 (2013): 255. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/am13002.

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Mass spectra and chromatographic data are presented to support the identification of cholest-24-en-3β-ol (desmostanol) in odorous secretions in Tasmanian short-beaked echidnas. This sterol has previously been described only in marine invertebrates and phytoplankton, and may have a role in chemical communication in the echidna.
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Walter, LR. "Appendicular Musculature in the Echidna, Tachyglossus-Aculeatus (Monotremata, Tachyglossidae)." Australian Journal of Zoology 36, no. 1 (1988): 65. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/zo9880065.

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An Australian echidna, Tachyglossus aculeatus, was dissected in order to verify the positions, origins, and insertions of the major appendicular muscles. Muscle identifications followed Westling (1889). Drawings of muscles were made as the dissection progressed. In osteology and musculature, as in many other aspects of their biology, echidnas display a mosaic pattern of apparently reptilian, mammalian, and unique traits.
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LeeHong, P. A., X. Li, W. L. Bryden, and L. C. Ward. "Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and chemical composition as measures of body composition of the short-beaked echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus aculeatus)." Australian Journal of Zoology 67, no. 2 (2019): 73. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/zo19034.

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Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) is a non-invasive technology for measurement of body composition that requires validation against reference methods when applied to a new species. The aim of this work was to validate DXA for the assessment of body composition of the echidna. Body composition was determined in the short-beaked echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus aculeatus) using a Norland XR36 DXA scanner and validated by proximate chemical analysis for dry matter, ash, crude fat (FM) and protein (as 6.25 × N) and bone mineral content (BMC). Echidnas were opportunistically obtained as ‘road kill’. Body composition data were compared between techniques by correlation and limits of agreement (LOA) analyses. Twenty-eight echidnas (11 males, 13 females, 4 not determined), weighing 520–5517 g, underwent analyses. Mean FM was 489.9 ± 439.5 g and 448.5 ± 337.5 g, lean mass was 2276.0 ± 1021.4 g and 2256.0 ± 1026.0 g, fat-free mass was 2356.3 ± 1055.1 g and 2389.5 ± 1081.1 g and BMC was 80.3 ± 39.5 g and 79.9 ± 42.4 g by DXA and chemical analysis, respectively. The two methods were highly correlated (0.84 to 0.99) and not significantly different, although LOA were large. DXA has the potential to be used to assess body composition of echidnas although further work is required to improve accuracy of measurement.
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Bech, Tine. "Echidna." Leonardo 43, no. 4 (August 2010): 388–89. http://dx.doi.org/10.1162/leon_a_00015.

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Dutton-Regester, Kate, Tamara Keeley, Jane C. Fenelon, Alice Roser, Haley Meer, Andrew Hill, Michael Pyne, Marilyn B. Renfree, and Stephen Johnston. "Plasma progesterone secretion during gestation of the captive short-beaked echidna." Reproduction 162, no. 4 (October 1, 2021): 267–75. http://dx.doi.org/10.1530/rep-21-0110.

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This study describes the progesterone profile during pregnancy in sexually mature female captive short-beaked echidnas (Tachyglossus aculeatus aculeatus). Echidnas were monitored daily by video surveillance to confirm key reproductive behaviour. Plasma samples were collected and pouch morphology was assessed three times a week. The pouch of the female echidna only develops during gestation and it was possible to create a four-stage grading system using the most distinguishable characteristics of pouch development. Maximum pouch development was associated with declining progesterone concentrations, with the pouch closing in a drawstring-like manner at oviposition. Control of pouch development in pregnant echidnas is not yet clear but later pouch development is associated with a decrease in progesterone and pouch closure and may be under mechanical influences of the egg or young in the pouch. The length of pregnancy was 16.7 ± 0.2 days with a 15.1 ± 1.0 days luteal phase followed by an incubation period in the pouch. Eggs could be detected in utero at least 4 days before oviposition. Plasma progesterone peaked at 10.5 ± 0.9 ng/mL within 12 days of mating but then declined to basal levels within 1 day of oviposition and remained basal throughout egg incubation, confirming that progesterone is elevated throughout pregnancy and that gestation does not extend beyond the luteal phase. After the loss of an egg or pouch young, most females entered a second oestrous cycle and ovulated, suggesting echidnas are seasonally polyoestrous. The duration of the luteal phase in the echidna corresponds with that observed in other mammals.
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Dissertations / Theses on the topic "Echidna"

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Yao, Tian. "Measuring forest structure and biomass using Echidna® ground-based lidar." Thesis, Boston University, 2012. https://hdl.handle.net/2144/12687.

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Thesis (Ph.D.)--Boston University PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis or dissertation. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you.
Forest canopy structural parameters and above-ground biomass, retrieved by a ground-based, upward-scanning, near-infrared (1064 nm), full-waveform lidar, the Echidna® Validation Instrument (EVI), matched ground measurements with R2 values of 0.92 to 0.99 at six hardwood and conifer forest sites within New England in 2007 and at eight conifer forest sites in the Sierra National Forest in California in 2008. Retrieved parameters included mean diameter at breast height (DBH), stem count density, basal area, and above-ground biomass, based on five scans within each 1-ha plot. Canopy heights derived from the EVI-retrieved foliage profile closely matched those derived from the airborne Laser Vegetation Imaging Sensor (LVIS). Topographic slope can induce errors in parameter retrievals because the horizontal plane of the instrument scan, which is used to identifY, measure, and count tree trunks, will intersect trunks below breast height in the uphill direction and above breast height in the downhill direction. I tested three methods of slope correction on the Sierra sites. Without correction, single-scan correlations of structural parameters with field measurements ranged from 0.53-0.86; after correction, from 0.78-0.91, 0.80-0.93 and 0.85-0.93 for the three methods respectively. These results document the importance of the slope correction in EVI structural retrievals. Three sites scanned in 2007 provided the opportunity to detect change in comparison to 2009 or 2010 scans. At a shelterwood conifer site at Howland Experimental Forest, mean DBH, above-ground biomass, and leaf area index (LAI) all increased between 2007 and 2009. An ice storm struck the Harvard Forest in December, 2008, providing the opportunity to detect damage between 2007 and 2009 or 2010 EVI scans at two sites there: hemlock and hardwood. Retrieved leaf area index (LAI) was 13 percent lower in the hemlock site in 2009 and 10 percent lower in the hardwood site in 2010. Broken tops were visible in the 2010 data. Stem density decreased and mean DBH increased at both sites, as small and weak trees were felled by the ice.
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Kuchel, Louise J. "The energetics and patterns of torpor in free-ranging Tachyglossus aculeatus from a warm-temperate climate /." [St. Lucia, Qld.], 2003. http://www.library.uq.edu.au/pdfserve.php?image=thesisabs/absthe17581.pdf.

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Yang, Xiaoyuan. "Using a ground-based lidar instrument (Echidna ®) to reconstruct three-dimensional forest structure for biophysical and ecological studies." Thesis, Boston University, 2012. https://hdl.handle.net/2144/31626.

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Thesis ()--Boston University
PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis or dissertation. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you.
Three-dimensional reconstructions of forest stands, assembled from multiple scans of the ground-based full-waveform lidar, Echidna® Validation Instrument (EVI), provide a new pathway to estimate biophysical parameters of forest structure, as well as a novel ecological application visualizing bat flight tracks through a reconstructed forest. I reconstruct six 50 m by 50 m forest stands of varying canopy density and species from the Sierra Nevada National Forest, California, and the Harvard Forest, Petersham, Massachusetts, using lidar data acquired in 2008 and 2009. I use commercial software tools to display, manipulate, and produce "fly-through" visualizations of our forest stands. The procedure processes each returned lidar pulse to identify one or multiple "hits"; converts associated peak power to apparent reflectance; classifies hits as ground hits or non-ground hits of either trunk/branch or foliage using apparent reflectance; locates hits in Cartesian coordinates; stores hits as points in a point cloud; and registers five or more overlapping scans into a single point cloud reconstruction. Applying visualization tools, I estimate forest structural parameters that include tree diameter at breast height (DBH), tree height, crown diameter, crown height, and foliage area volume density (FA VD), that agree with field measurements and by airborne lidar data. I generate a fine-resolution digital terrain model (DTM) and canopy height model (CHM) at each site, to measure individual DBH and tree height more accurately. In an ecological application, I reconstruct three-dimensional bat flight trajectories using imaging data from thermal infrared cameras at a bat roosting and maternity site in Petersham, and co-register them to a three-dimensional forest reconstruction built from nine scans at the site. Patterns of flight trajectories during first 5 seconds of emergence from the roosting barn show how the bats chose different flight routes to forage along the edge of a forest and into the understory.
2031-01-01
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Barker, Justine Megan. "Comparative physiology of Australian echidnas (Tachyglossus aculeatus)." Thesis, Curtin University, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/59649.

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The short-beaked echidna has a combination of ancestral and derived physiological traits. Its physiology is less primitive than previously thought, with many aspects being typically mammalian, including a previously unrecognised capacity for evaporative heat loss. Echidnas have considerable metabolic, thermal and hygric plasticity to accommodate daily, seasonal and geographical environmental demands and there are significant differences in the physiology of the two most distinct sub-species.
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Lehrke, Janina [Verfasser]. "Phylogeny of Echiura (Annelida, Polychaeta) inferred from morphological and molecular data-implications for character evolution / Janina Lehrke." Bonn : Universitäts- und Landesbibliothek Bonn, 2012. http://d-nb.info/1044082402/34.

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Morrow, GE. "Optimizing reproduction in the Tasmanian echidna Tachyglossus aculeatus setosus: the influence of an obligatory hibernation period and intense sexual conflict." Thesis, 2013. https://eprints.utas.edu.au/17555/1/Front-Morrow-_thesis.pdf.

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The echidna is a solitary, seasonally breeding monotreme mammal with a mating system characterized by high levels of intra-male competition for access to receptive females. Throughout Australia the breeding season follows a period of inactivity which ranges from shallow bouts of torpor to prolonged deep hibernation. In this thesis I investigated how the Tasmanian echidna optimizes its reproduction around an obligatory hibernation period and in the presence of intense sexual conflict. The bradymetabolic (slowing of metabolism) effect of hibernation was exploited by both sexes to optimize their reproduction. I found that testes recrudescence (defined as an increase in testes volume and density) was initiated prior to males entering hibernation, a strategy not seen in any other hibernating mammal. This strategy can be linked to the low energy and density diet and requirement to hibernate to maximise energy-savings, and to the large relative size of echidna testes reflecting a mating system with intense levels of intra-male competition. It took approximately two months at euthermic body temperatures from the initiation of recrudescence in December for echidna testes to reach 75% of peak size. Therefore if testes recrudescence did not occur prior to entering hibernation, hibernation would be restricted to a one and a half month period to allow mating in June. Male echidnas initiated mating activity by locating hibernating females and entering their hibernacula. This strategy was common in my study population and males that remained with a female in her hibernaculum for 13 hours or more gained a copulation opportunity. However, all females that mated or were disturbed by males prior to July 27 re-entered hibernation. This indicates that mating often occurred earlier than optimal for female reproductive success. Many of the females that re-entered hibernation after mating were pregnant. Pregnant females entered hibernation only in early pregnancy: hibernation extended the gestation period and hence allowed females to delay egg-laying. Females timed their reproduction so that they emerged from their 37 day period of nursery burrow confinement as ecosystem productivity increased. Hibernation therefore allows successful reproduction in a population where there is asynchronous timing of optimal mating between males and females. This thesis explores the influence of hibernation on sexual conflict, demonstrates the numerous interactions that can occur between hibernation and reproduction and shows that the bradymetabolic property of hibernation is exploited by both male and female echidnas to optimize reproductive fitness.
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Harris, R. "Chemical communication for reproduction in the Tasmanian short-beaked echidna, Tachyglossus aculeatus setosus." Thesis, 2014. https://eprints.utas.edu.au/18649/3/Whole-Harris-thesis-inc-pub-mat.pdf.

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Communication plays a key role in coordinating all social interactions in an individual’s life, but is particularly crucial for coordinating reproduction. Although chemical (olfactory) signals are ubiquitous in sexual communication in mammals, a disproportionate reliance on laboratory-based studies using a limited range of species, along with several logistical and methodological limitations, limit our broader understanding of their functions in reproduction and as sexually selected traits. I addressed these shortcomings by using an integrated, multidisciplinary approach, combining organic chemical analyses, physiology, genetics and behaviour, to investigate chemical signals, reproduction and sexual selection in a terrestrial, egg-laying mammal (monotreme), the short-beaked echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus). Although the monotreme and therian lines have been evolutionarily separate for over 150 million years, echidna scent gland secretions from the spur and cloaca showed a typical mammalian pattern in terms of high chemical diversity and complexity. I identified a large number of compounds of varying volatility, molecular weight, functional groups and aromaticity, suggesting a high reliance on olfactory communication. Similarities with other vertebrates can indicate evolutionary convergence on optimal chemicals as signals, although several obscure and even novel compounds were also identified. Consistent with other seasonal breeders, echidna chemical profiles varied between sexes and during the mating season. Profiles also differed between individuals, suggesting they could contain genetic information, although microsatellite markers were inadequate to confirm this hypothesis. Changes in male spur secretions during the mating season coincided with maximum annual plasma testosterone concentrations and could be sexually selected, functioning in mate choice or intra-sexual competition. Males were attracted to female scent, confirming male response to sex-specific scent differences is an important driver of echidna mating behaviour. Consequently, chemical sensory traits that influence the ability to locate mates seem to be favoured by natural and sexual selection.Behavioural responses to chemical signals can be complicated by sexual conflict, although this has rarely been investigated in mammals. Male echidnas locate and mate with hibernating females; however females showed no changes in chemical profiles during hibernation. These results suggest that females do not ‘actively’ signal to males while hibernating, but intense male-male competition for access to females has probably driven earlier male readiness to breed, even before females might otherwise emerge from hibernation and signal to males. In females, chemical cues and reproductive physiology were not closely linked, as females showed continued mating activity during pregnancy and no detectable changes in chemical profiles at the time of fertilization or during pregnancy. Therefore, female reproductive status appears undisclosed to males, and multi-male mating may function to confuse paternity and reduce infanticide risk. These results suggest chemical signals are used differently by males and females to increase their reproductive success, often at the expense of the other sex, resulting in an evolutionary ‘arms race’ between signalers and receivers. Overall, a complex interplay between chemical signals, behaviour, environmental and selective pressures is responsible for the mating behaviour observed in Tasmanian echidnas. My work highlights the benefit of using a comprehensive, multidisciplinary approach based on a free-living, ‘non-model’ mammalian species, representing a significant step towatrds understanding the influences of selective pressures, including selection and conflict, on animal communication.
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Sprent, JA. "Diet, spatial ecology and energetics of echidnas: the significance of habitat and seasonal variation." Thesis, 2012. https://eprints.utas.edu.au/14799/3/whole-sprent-thesis-inc-pub-mat.pdf.

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The ant- and termite-eating echidna is a solitary, monotreme mammal with a highly seasonal life history. I investigated several aspects of the seasonal energetics and ecology of free-ranging echidnas: the role of leptin in the annual mass cycle, seasonal and habitat effects on diet, the relationship between home range size and habitat quality, and the effect of habitat on the siting of echidna latrines. The echidna has a large seasonal variation in fat stores, which reach their maximum prior to hibernation. I hypothesised that the hormone leptin would have the same role in the echidna as in eutherian hibernators, i.e. that there would be a direct relationship between body mass and plasma leptin that would change to allow pre-hibernatory fattening. I found significant seasonal variations in plasma leptin, with the highest levels occurring in hibernation and in females during mating. The lowest levels were found in males after the reproductive period. Rather than the expected strong positive relationship between adiposity and plasma leptin I found a weak negative relationship, similar to that in reptiles and birds. To determine if there was any significant seasonal variation in diet associated with prehibernatory fattening I investigated diet using scat and stable isotope analysis. Echidna scats consisted largely of ants and the larvae of pasture cockchafer beetles. There was significant seasonal variation in percent occurrence of larvae, but not in the ant species found in scats or in the stable isotopic composition of echidna plasma. Although there was no difference in the prey items that contributed most to scat contents of animals living in different habitats, stable isotope analysis of blood showed a highly significant effect of habitat type on `δ^15N`. Female echidnas showed a significant negative relationship between the proportion of woodland habitat and home range size, whereas there was no such relationship for males, which had significantly larger home ranges. My data suggest that female home range is scaled to available resources, while male home range is probably scaled to maximise access to females. The role of latrines and their relationship to habitat was examined by a detailed survey of part of the field site, where many echidna home ranges were known to overlap. Latrines were located more frequently in scrub than in pasture or thick bush and the highest frequency of latrines occurred where there were two home ranges that overlapped. Latrines may be important in the spatial organisation of echidnas.
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Summerell, Alexandra. "A Wildlife Forensic Genetic Toolbox to Combat the Illegal Trade of the Short Beaked Echidna." Thesis, 2021. http://hdl.handle.net/10453/149094.

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University of Technology Sydney. Faculty of Science.
The international illegal wildlife trade is widespread and affects thousands of species. The illegal trade in ‘captive bred’ animals is one component of this trade, driven by the perceived value of unique species or those that are difficult to breed in captivity. ‘Demand’ for these species is met via poaching wild individuals to supplement ‘captive breeding’. One of Australia’s most iconic species; the short beaked echidna (𝘛𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘺𝘨𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘴𝘶𝘴 𝘢𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘴) is one such species impacted by this trade. Echidnas are found throughout Australia, as well as New Guinea, and are notoriously difficult to breed in captivity, with less than 20 bred in Australian zoos in the last five years. However, in 2016 Indonesian breeding facilities listed a breeding quota of 50 echidnas raising suspicion around the origin of these animals. Exposing and combating illegal trade requires the development of robust forensic tools to aid enforcement. This thesis uses conservation genetics approaches to create a forensic genetic toolbox that can be implemented with short beaked echidnas of suspicious origin. 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘦𝘳 2 outlines a validated mitochondrial DNA test that was able to determine source region (i.e. New Guinea or Australia) of short beaked echidnas, including with DNA extracted from non-invasive samples. Mitochondrial DNA provided limited resolution to determine the source finer than region, thus 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘦𝘳 3 presents a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) marker set developed to investigate short beaked echidna subspecies, which to date had only been described based on morphology and geographic distribution. Genetic structure within the SNP data were congruent with current subspecies, but significantly wider sampling of echidnas, in particular, island populations and at subspecies overlap zones is needed to reach definitive conclusions. In 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘦𝘳 4 I demonstrated these SNP markers also had the power to elucidate relatedness between individuals, and using captive bred individuals, could be used to reconstruct pedigree, which I then applied to assess relationships within a wild population. 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘦𝘳 4 includes a suite of SNPs that once validated could be used for forensic investigations of short beaked echidnas. Lastly, 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘦𝘳 5, outlines the attempted validation of a real-time PCR sex determination method using previously published methods. This test however failed multiple validation criteria so would require further optimisation before it could be used in a wildlife forensic context. This thesis presents the first set of genetic tools for the short beaked echidna in a forensic context, providing novel information on source region, subspecies and relatedness that can be implemented to combat the illegal trade of this iconic species.
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Yang, Chou-Shen, and 楊朝森. "The studies of fundamental biology of Echidna polyzona and Gymothorax chilospilus from the waters around Taiwan." Thesis, 2005. http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/91291426567020631592.

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碩士
國立臺灣海洋大學
水產養殖學系
93
Abstract Moray eels are the commercially important fishes in Taiwan. Studies about the fundamental biology of local moray eels are pretty few. There were study two species of Taiwan morays, Echidna polyzona and Gymnothorax chilospilus were selected for the study of their fundamental biology. The length-weight equation for E. polyzona was W=0.0004 TL3.3916. G. chilospilus was W=0.0011 TL3.0409. The most frequent occurring length of captured E. polyzona were between 40~50 cm. And most frequent occurring length of captured G. chilospilus were between 30~40 cm. About reproductive results, the average total length, weight and GSI of male E. polyzona was 48.18±9.11 cm, 199.37±111.83 g, and 0.93±0.49 respectively. And the respective data of female E. polyzona was total length: 47.38±8.73 cm, average weight: 209.38±137.62 g, GSI: 3.41±2.94, fecundity: 23783±15298 and egg diameter: 0.92±0.07 mm. The average total length, weight and GSI of male G. chilospilus was 32.51±2.98 cm, 44.09±12.58 g, and 1.98±0.80 respectively. And the respective data of female G. chilospilus was total length: 28.15±2.48 cm, average weight: 24.21±5.68 g, GSI: 4.61±5.59, fecundity: 5032±1052 and egg diameter: 0.96±0.10 mm . For both male and female of the two species, the right gonad was bigger than the left gonad. The reproduction type of these two species was gonochoristic concluded by the monosexual characters of all the gonads examined. About dentition results, the shape of teeth on the premaxillary plate was the characteristic dentition for sex dimorphism distinguishment in E. polyzona . Male exhibited a series of sharp teeth in the peripheral of the premaxillary plate ,and the median premaxillary teeth disappeared in large male. In female the teeth of the premaxillary plate were conical, which beared conical median premaxillary teeth in the medial part of premaxillary plate. The large the body-length increased, the more the number of the male’s median premaxillary teeth was found to disappear. Increased amount of vomerine teeth and dentary teeth were found with increasing sizes for both male and female. Dentition of G. chilospilus, sex dimorphism is mainly found in the number of teeth. Teeth of females are more numerous than males in each part almost. Males do not have inner maxillary teeth and inner dentary teeth. Following the body-length increase, teeth of outer maxillary teeth and outer dentary teeth will decrease a little in G. chilospilus. After eight to ten monthes rearing, the growth rate of E. polyzona that with 10~20 cm body-length interval was 13.27 %, the weight gain 0 %. In 20~30 cm body-length interval, the growth rate was 5.80 %, the weight gain 36.73 %, In 30~40 cm body-length interval, the growth rate was -2.06 % the weight gain -23.62 %. After eight monthes rearing, the growth rate of G. chilospilus that with 20~30 cm body-length interval were 14.28±6.55 %, the weight gain 84.87±47.62 %. In 30~40 cm body-length interval, the growth rate was 8.70 %, the weight gain 75.35 %.
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Books on the topic "Echidna"

1

Hēliopoulou-Ronkan, D̲ora. Hē echidna. Athēna: Ekdoseis "Gnōsē", 1990.

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The Australian echidna. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1991.

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Penders, Ken. Knuckles the echidna archives. Mamaroneck, NY: Archie Publications, 2011.

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Rismiller, Peggy. The echidna: Australia's enigma. [Southport, Conn.]: Hugh Lauter Levin Associates, Inc., 1999.

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Tesar, Jenny E. What on earth is an echidna? Woodbridge, Conn: Blackbirch Press, 1995.

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Bancroft, Bronwyn. E is for echidna: My Australian word book. Prahran, Victoria: Little Hare Books, 2011.

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Augee, Michael, Brett Gooden, and Anne Musser. Echidna. CSIRO Publishing, 2006. http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/9780643093041.

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The echidna is one of the world’s most extraordinary creatures. It is a living fossil whose relatives were walking the earth over 100 million years ago. Like the platypus, it is a mammal that lays eggs. And, like all mammals, it has fur and produces milk. This book describes the echidna’s lifestyle and the adaptations that have made it so successful. It draws on the latest research into these strange creatures, covering their evolution, anatomy, senses, reproduction, behaviour, feeding habits and metabolism. The authors reveal some fascinating new findings, showing how echidnas are masters of their environment, and not simply some sort of mammal ‘test model’ that went wrong. A final chapter on conservation includes information on captive diet and management.
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Echidna. Universe, 1999.

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Croft, Alfred. Echidna. Independently Published, 2019.

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The Echidna. Kangaroo Press, 1995.

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Book chapters on the topic "Echidna"

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Nicol, Stewart C., and Gemma E. Morrow. "Sex and Seasonality: Reproduction in the Echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus)." In Living in a Seasonal World, 143–53. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg, 2012. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-28678-0_13.

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Harris, Rachel L., Elissa Z. Cameron, and Stewart C. Nicol. "A Field Study of Wild Echidna Responses to Conspecific Odour." In Chemical Signals in Vertebrates 14, 71–80. Cham: Springer International Publishing, 2019. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-17616-7_6.

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Buckland, Richard, and Michael Johnson. "ECHIDNA: A system for manipulating explicit choice higher dimensional automata." In Algebraic Methodology and Software Technology, 587–90. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg, 1996. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/bfb0014348.

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Mahmood, Abdun Naser, Christopher Leckie, and Parampalli Udaya. "Echidna: Efficient Clustering of Hierarchical Data for Network Traffic Analysis." In NETWORKING 2006. Networking Technologies, Services, and Protocols; Performance of Computer and Communication Networks; Mobile and Wireless Communications Systems, 1092–98. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg, 2006. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/11753810_92.

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Fish, J. D., and S. Fish. "Echiura." In A Student’s Guide to the Seashore, 354–55. Dordrecht: Springer Netherlands, 1989. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-5888-6_17.

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Pandian, T. J. "Echiura." In Reproduction and Development in Minor Phyla, 154–61. First edition. | Boca Raton : CRC Press, 2021. | Series:: CRC Press, 2021. http://dx.doi.org/10.1201/9781003057512-21.

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Holz, Peter. "Monotremes (Echidnas and Platypus)." In Zoo Animal and Wildlife Immobilization and Anesthesia, 515–19. Hoboken, NJ, USA: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2014. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/9781118792919.ch31.

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Reynolds, Benjamin D., Cameron J. Whittaker, Kelly A. Caruso, and Jeffrey Smith. "Ophthalmology of Monotremes: Platypus and Echidnas." In Wild and Exotic Animal Ophthalmology, 5–9. Cham: Springer International Publishing, 2022. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-81273-7_2.

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Nicol, Stewart C., and Niels A. Andersen. "Patterns of Hibernation of Echidnas in Tasmania." In Life in the Cold, 21–28. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg, 2000. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-04162-8_2.

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Harris, Rachel L., Jenny Sprent, and Stewart C. Nicol. "Latrines as Potential Communication Centres in Short-Beaked Echidnas." In Chemical Signals in Vertebrates 14, 13–26. Cham: Springer International Publishing, 2019. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-17616-7_2.

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Conference papers on the topic "Echidna"

1

Merrill, Devon J., Jorge Garza, and Steven Swanson. "Echidna." In SCF '19: Symposium on Computational Fabrication. New York, NY, USA: ACM, 2019. http://dx.doi.org/10.1145/3328939.3329004.

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Bech, Tine. "Echidna." In ACM SIGGRAPH 2010 Art Gallery. New York, New York, USA: ACM Press, 2010. http://dx.doi.org/10.1145/1836786.1836795.

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Brzeski, Jurek K., Peter Gillingham, David Correll, John Dawson, Anna M. Moore, Rolf Muller, Scott Smedley, and Greg A. Smith. "Echidna: the engineering challenges." In SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation. SPIE, 2004. http://dx.doi.org/10.1117/12.550963.

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Sheinis, Andrew, Will Saunders, Peter Gillingham, Tony J. Farrell, Rolf Muller, Scott Smedley, Jurek Brzeski, Lewis G. Waller, James Gilbert, and Greg Smith. "Advances in the Echidna fiber-positioning technology." In SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation, edited by Ramón Navarro, Colin R. Cunningham, and Allison A. Barto. SPIE, 2014. http://dx.doi.org/10.1117/12.2057126.

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Moore, Anna M., Peter R. Gillingham, Jason S. Griesbach, and Masayuki Akiyama. "Spine development for the Echidna fiber positioner." In Astronomical Telescopes and Instrumentation, edited by Masanori Iye and Alan F. M. Moorwood. SPIE, 2003. http://dx.doi.org/10.1117/12.462333.

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McGrath, Andrew, Sam Barden, Stan Miziarski, William Rambold, and Greg Smith. "2dF grows up: Echidna for the AAT." In SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation, edited by Ian S. McLean and Mark M. Casali. SPIE, 2008. http://dx.doi.org/10.1117/12.788605.

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van Rooij, Joris, Johan Swetzen, Vincenzo Gulisano, Magnus Almgren, and Marina Papatriantafilou. "eChIDNA: Continuous data validation in advanced metering infrastructures." In 2018 IEEE International Energy Conference (ENERGYCON). IEEE, 2018. http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/energycon.2018.8398800.

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Grieco, Gustavo, Will Song, Artur Cygan, Josselin Feist, and Alex Groce. "Echidna: effective, usable, and fast fuzzing for smart contracts." In ISSTA '20: 29th ACM SIGSOFT International Symposium on Software Testing and Analysis. New York, NY, USA: ACM, 2020. http://dx.doi.org/10.1145/3395363.3404366.

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Gillingham, Peter R., Stan Miziarski, Masayuki Akiyama, and Volker Klocke. "Echidna: a multifiber positioner for the Subaru prime focus." In Astronomical Telescopes and Instrumentation, edited by Masanori Iye and Alan F. M. Moorwood. SPIE, 2000. http://dx.doi.org/10.1117/12.395458.

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Akiyama, Masayuki, Scott Smedley, Peter Gillingham, Jurek Brzeski, Tony Farrell, Masahiko Kimura, Rolf Muller, Naoyuki Tamura, and Naruhisa Takato. "Performance of Echidna fiber positioner for FMOS on Subaru." In SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation, edited by Eli Atad-Ettedgui and Dietrich Lemke. SPIE, 2008. http://dx.doi.org/10.1117/12.788968.

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