Zaglossus attenboroughi, Flannery & Groves, 1998

Russell A. Mittermeier & Don E. Wilson, 2015, Tachyglossidae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 5 Monotremes and Marsupials, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 34-56 : 55-56

3 . Attenborough’s Long-beaked Echidna

Zaglossus attenboroughi

French: Echidné dAttenborough / German: Attenborough-Langschnabeligel / Spanish: Equidna de hocico largo de Attenborough

Other common names: Attenborough'’s Echidna, Attenborough’s Long-nosed Echidna, Cyclops Long-beaked Echidna, Cyclops Long-nosed Echidna, Sir David's Long-beaked Echidna, Sir David's Long-nosed Echidna

Taxonomy. Zaglossus attenboroughi Flannery & Groves 1998 , Indonesia, Papua Province (= Irian Jaya), Cyclops Mountains, “Oost-top, Berg Rara , 1600 m. ”

This species is monotypic.

Distribution. Cyclops Mts, NE Papua Province (Indonesia).

Descriptive notes. Head-body just over 30 cm. No specific data are available for body weight. There are five claws on each foot. The type and only specimen of Attenborough’s Long-beaked Echidna consists of a complete skin and rostral parts of a badly crushed cranium collected in 1961. Attenborough’s Long-beaked Echidna is the smallest member of the genus Zaglossus , with beak length of only 7 cm. Beak is also straighter than in other species of Zaglossus . Fur is shorter, denser, and finer than in other species of Zaglossus , and it also differs in being reddish brown dorsally and fawn ventrally.

Habitat. Between 160 m and 1700 m, particularly montane moss forest.

Food and Feeding. There is no specific information available for this species, but the shorter, straighter beak suggests differences in diet and feeding from the other species of Zaglossus .

Breeding. There is no information available for this species.

Activity patterns. There is no information available for this species.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. There is no information available for this species.

Status and Conservation. CITES Appendix II. Classified as Critically Endangered on The IUCN Red List. Total area of habitat available to Attenborough’s Long-beaked Echidna is probably less than 50 km. It has not been observed in the wild since 1961, although an expedition to the Cyclops Mountains in May 2007 found evidence of recent digging activity and imprints of nose pokes in soft soil, leaf litter, and termite nests, and there was local knowledge of the species that implied its continued existence there.

Bibliography. Baillie et al. (2009), Flannery & Groves (1998), Leary, Seri, Flannery, Wright, Hamilton, Helgen, Singadan, Menzies, Allison, James, Aplin et al. (2008a).

Figures

On following pages: 4. Short-beaked Echidna (7achyglossus aculeatus).

Distribution. Cyclops Mts, NE Papua Province (Indonesia).