spiny anteater

For them, one of the first flashes of hope was the welcomed reappearance of a beloved resident echidna, or spiny anteater, named Enchilada.

Back at Australia Zoo, Robert contends with a tiny bird with a huge attitude, while Bindi has her hands full bathing 3 Foot, a spiny anteater with skin allergies and a touchy temperament.

But one branch of mammals doesn’t suckle: the egg-laying monotremes, which include today’s platypus and echidna, or spiny anteater.

They had to resolve naming issues—sometimes a species would have multiple names, and at one point a spiny anteater shared the same moniker with a moray eel, confusing the computers.