Description
Porcupines are a slow moving, medium sized mammal with poor eyesight. So they have to rely on their sense of hearing and smell to know where the predators or their mates are.
Their quills, around 30,000 of them, will stand up when the porcupine feels threatened and they actually detach easily when touched. If a predator does get hold of a quill and it comes out, the porcupine will grow a new one. So they are are great protection to avoid predators.
Porcupines are also really good swimmers and in some porcupine species, the air-filled quills on their back help make them buoyant so they stay afloat. And they swim just like a dog paddle.
Did you know that a baby porcupine is called a ‘porcupette’!
