‘It is no wonder echidnas have managed to outlive most animals. Able to survive bushfires by curling up and disappearing underground, these prickly balls have developed impressive survival strategies. Find the short-beaked species poking their 6in-long tongues into ants’ nests at the Arkaba Conservancy in the Flinders Ranges, a five-hour drive from Adelaide, where wildlife can be observed on game drives, on walks or from purpose-built hides. Between mid-May and September, you may be lucky enough to see an “echidna train”, where several suitors trailing a female eventually surround her to create a love bed by digging a trench.’

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