This echidna rehabilitation assessment tool has been designed to help wildlife rehabilitation groups monitor their level of compliance with the Code of practice for injured, sick and orphaned monotremes (the code). Its primary purpose is to proactively help inform and guide improvements to their standards of echidna care and optimise post-rehabilitation outcomes.

The tool is for use by assessors to record observations during a site visit. Assessors may include species coordinators or experienced echidna rehabilitators such as mentors. The assessment aims to provide an objective snapshot of a group member’s application of the code. When applied across multiple members, the tool can also strategically inform future training and guide grant applications for replacement enclosures or other assets which are not code-compliant.

Everyone authorised to interact with echidnas is required to act in accordance with the code. It has been developed to protect the welfare of rescued echidnas and support the conservation of wild echidna populations. Compliance with the code is a condition of a biodiversity conservation licence to conduct wildlife rehabilitation under the NSW Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016. The person applying the tool must be familiar with the content and application of the code.