Somdatta Ganguly, E is for Echidna - A Photoshoot in the wild (ANIMAL & NATURE 2022)

Australia is full of wildlife, I'd always heard. So during all my travels around Victoria, I've always expected to find some fascinating forms of life. But usually what happens with my great expectations is that either they are brutally not fulfilled or I just get what I expected! You expect to see a kangaroo when you're near an open field in the wild at dusk and you see a mob of them. No big deal! However, when you just go out expecting to see only amazing rock formations and landscapes along Great Ocean Road and you suddenly spot an Echidna by the side of the road, that feeling is extra special! We saw this one near Lock Ard Gorge as we were travelling this April. Thanks to my son, whose surprised scream attracted us along with many others towards this marvelous animal. Thank goodness the scream didn't give it a heart attack, it kept on calmly searching for ants may be, in the surrounding bushes.

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.