Attenborough’s long-beaked echidna (Zaglossus attenboroughi) was named as a new species in 1998. It is one of three extant long-beaked echidna species and one of only five extant species of monotreme. But the description was based on a holotype collected in the Cyclops Mountains of New Guinea in 1961, and there has been no scientific documentation of the species since that time. However, Indigenous people have sighted the echidna repeatedly and this knowledge — combined with nose-poke trace signs of foraging echidnas — gave a team of Indonesian and international scientists confidence that the species was still extant. Using specific location information from surveys with local and Indigenous people, the team deployed multiple camera traps across the Cyclops Mountains. Writing in npj Biodiversity, Morib et al. now present footage of several echidna individuals, including images that show foraging and courtship behaviour. The photographs and videos derive from six different cameras at high elevations. The specific locations, body size and claw number allow the authors to conclude that the individuals are most likely to be Z. attenboroughi, rather than one of the other two long-beaked echidna species found in New Guinea. However, they recommend further taxonomic review of Zaglossus species. They also emphasise the likely role of local communities’ forest management strategies (which include long-established no-hunting and no-logging areas) in the persistence of this species, as well as the local knowledge that led to these reports.
Original reference: npj Biodiversity 4, 19 (2025)
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