Lost Attenborough’s long-beaked echidna rediscovered after more than 60 years

Until recently, only a single specimen of Attenborough’s long-beaked echidna (Zaglossus attenboroughi) was known, collected by a Dutch botanist in 1961 in the forests of the Cyclops Mountains in western New Guinea. Now—62 years later—the shoebox-sized animal from the echidna family was tracked down again using camera traps. This was revealed in a report by the non-profit conservation organization Re:wild.

Attenborough’s long-beaked echidna rediscovered: Photos and videos of the rare animal

The expedition to search for the lost Attenborough’s long-beaked echidna was conducted by the local NGO YAPPENDA and Oxford University with support from Cenderawasih University (UNCEN), the village of Yongsu, and Re:wild. The initiative for the search came from British biologist James Kempton of the University of Oxford. The expedition members spent four weeks in the forest before capturing the first-ever photos and videos of Attenborough’s long-beaked echidna with trail cameras.

Even before its rediscovery, there were indications that Attenborough’s long-beaked echidna might still exist. Researchers reportedly found burrows and tracks during a survey of the Cyclops Mountains in July 2007 that could potentially point to Attenborough’s long-beaked echidna. Conversations with locals also reportedly revealed that the species had last been sighted in 2005, as BBC reported.

Conservation of the long-leaked echidna in focus

Attenborough’s long-beaked echidna is classified as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List and belongs to the five species of monotremes—egg-laying mammals found only in Australia and New Guinea (which also include the platypus). Echidnas are nocturnal, spending their days in a burrow or hollow tree trunk, and are very shy, making them particularly difficult to track down.

Attenborough’s long-beaked echidna, also known as Sir David’s long-beaked echidna or the Cyclops long-beaked echidna, was named in honor of the British naturalist and wildlife filmmaker Sir David Attenborough. It is the smallest and rarest echidna. Very little is known about the animal’s behavior. Scientists believe it feeds on earthworms, which it searches for in leaf litter, and raises its spines when threatened to protect itself from predators.

The range of Attenborough’s long-beaked echidna, which is limited to the Cyclops Mountains on the north coast of Papua, Indonesia, on the island of New Guinea, is very small, making it particularly vulnerable to human encroachment on its habitat. Deforestation and smallholder agriculture pose the greatest threats to the population. The expedition team is planning conservation measures that include long-term monitoring of Attenborough’s long-beaked echidna and intensifying cooperation with local communities.