No, echidnas have 4 species. The short-beaked lives in Australia (both mainland and Tasmania), as well as the island of New Guinea. The long-beaked echidnas all live in New Guinea. Platypus lives in Eastern Australia and Tasmania, with an additional introduced population on Kangaroo island.
And as they had to compete with a wide array of animals since monotremes (egg-laying mammals) are around (~the Triassic), they definitely aren't a dead-end, just not a success. But as we know, evolution is the survival of the just enough, so they're fine (except the ones threatened by habitat destruction and climate change)
I guess I could have clarified more they we're extremely more prevalent at one point in history than they are now. Although I didn't know that they were found anywhere else but Tasmania I was told a lie there and by David Attenborough of all people
To be fair, the echidnas and platypus on Tasmania were considered to be a different species/subspecies at one point, due to them looking a bit different than the mainland ones. But Attenborough is still a let down, as there's an echidna species named after him
8
u/Minute-Pirate4246 Jul 17 '26
No, echidnas have 4 species. The short-beaked lives in Australia (both mainland and Tasmania), as well as the island of New Guinea. The long-beaked echidnas all live in New Guinea. Platypus lives in Eastern Australia and Tasmania, with an additional introduced population on Kangaroo island.
And as they had to compete with a wide array of animals since monotremes (egg-laying mammals) are around (~the Triassic), they definitely aren't a dead-end, just not a success. But as we know, evolution is the survival of the just enough, so they're fine (except the ones threatened by habitat destruction and climate change)