# Echidna Puggles Weigh Less Than a Mini Marshmallow Special care for echidna puggles at San Diego Zoo Safari Park. - **Source:** [Popular Science](https://brifing.si/source/cc3d313a-759c-4802-b881-fc8585f35ef9) - **Published:** 2026-07-18 - **Topic:** [Business](https://brifing.si/c/business) - **Original article:** - **On Brifing:** https://brifing.si/s/4ba63c4e-2991-40bb-89e1-833077a745fd ## Characteristics of Echidna Puggles Echidnas are spiky, long-nosed animals native to New Guinea and Australia. Along with platypuses, they are one of two monotremes, or egg-laying mammals. Their young, called puggles, hatch after about 10 days of incubation in the mother's pouch and weigh about as much as half a mini marshmallow. ## The Care Process for Puggles Echidna puggles spend about two months in their mother's temporary pouch. The mother then moves them to a nursery burrow and continues to feed them every few days for several months. The puggles begin to explore the outside world once the mother stops backfilling the burrow. ## Care at San Diego Zoo Safari Park At San Diego Zoo Safari Park, an echidna named Kathryn gave birth to two puggles in one season. While one is being raised by the mother, the other is being hand-reared by veterinarians due to its failure to gain weight. ## The Role of Veterinarians Veterinarians are performing regular ultrasounds on the puggle's stomach to understand how quickly it digests its formula. This helps them make more precise decisions about feeding frequency. The puggle is closely monitored with daily health checks. ## Challenges and Success Rates Hand-rearing echidna puggles at this age typically has a low success rate. The San Diego Zoo team is closely monitoring the puggle's health and intervening as needed to ensure its survival. ## Species Conservation Echidnas are a species at risk of extinction. The efforts of San Diego Zoo Safari Park are helping to conserve the species and ensure its survival for future generations. The successful rearing of these puggles offers hope for the species' future. ## Sources covering this story - https://www.popsci.com/environment/baby-echidnas-san-diego/ — --- _Summary written by Brifing from the original reporting. Copyright in the original article belongs to its publisher; read the full piece at the link above._