You'd
be forgiven for thinking that just about every native Australian animal
is venomous, but here's some good news - echidnas are venom-free!
Male echidnas have a hollow spur on the back of one of their hind legs that secretes a kind of waxy substance. For years researchers have suspected that these spurs were used as weapons, and that the secretion was venomous, because their close relative, the platypus, also has spurs on the back of the male's hind limbs, which they use to jab venom into rival males during the mating season. But Australian researchers have discovered that the echidna's waxy secretions, which are produced by glands behind the spur, are not venomous, and are used to create scent markings so they can communicate non-violently with their peers during the mating season.
Read more: http://bit.ly/1ikGpDL via The Age
Image: S J Bennett (flickr.com/photos/
Male echidnas have a hollow spur on the back of one of their hind legs that secretes a kind of waxy substance. For years researchers have suspected that these spurs were used as weapons, and that the secretion was venomous, because their close relative, the platypus, also has spurs on the back of the male's hind limbs, which they use to jab venom into rival males during the mating season. But Australian researchers have discovered that the echidna's waxy secretions, which are produced by glands behind the spur, are not venomous, and are used to create scent markings so they can communicate non-violently with their peers during the mating season.
Read more: http://bit.ly/1ikGpDL via The Age
Image: S J Bennett (flickr.com/photos/
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