But what should the average Aussie do if they're behind the wheel on a public road?

Viewers held their breath on Sunday as the spiky critter was spotted crossing the course at the cutting on Mount Panorama in New South Wales.

Several cars narrowly missed the misplaced monotreme before it managed to get to the barrier and the race was put behind a safety car for three laps.

The echidna eventually found a gap in the concrete fencing and was picked up by a safety marshal.

While echidnas are found across Australia, you're unlikely to spot one out and about.

"They actually very widespread and they're really quite common out there — they're just very secretive," said Dr Michael Pyne, senior vet at Currumbin Wildlife Hospital.

"They keep to themselves and it's quite unusual to see an echidna marching across the road during broad daylight, like it did at Bathurst."

Be aware at dawn and dusk:

Echidnas are most active during their breeding season from late June to November.

It's also when most echidnas are brought to the wildlife hospital, which is just north of NSW's border with Queensland.

"We see probably 90 per cent of our echidnas come into the hospital during that time," Dr Pyne said.

"It's usually trauma from cars or our pet dogs."

Lauren Ritchie, spokesperson for roadside assistance and insurance company RACQ, said drivers shouldn't take evasive action to avoid an animal on the road.

"Don't swerve into oncoming traffic to try and avoid an animal," Ms Ritchie said.

"But obviously if it is safe to do so, you should try and avoid a collision.

"For obvious reasons we don't want to injure our wildlife, but also hitting an animal can cause extensive damage to your vehicle and potentially make it swerve or spin out."

Ms Ritchie said drivers should be mindful about the time of day they were travelling, particularly with wildlife on the side of the road.

"We know that dawn and dusk are those peak times for animals to come out," she said.

"Animals tend to freeze in headlights, so if you are travelling with your headlights on, be mindful that you can startle animals at that point.

"If you just happen to be driving at dawn or dusk or where you spot a sign that says echidnas cross here, generally be aware, but that doesn't mean you should be slowing down just because of that.

"That can cause more issues for other drivers if you are also dangerously under-speed."

Hidden injuries:

Dr Pyne said that upon finding an injured echidna, it was important to take it to the nearest vet or wildlife carer.

"The trick to picking them up is really, ideally, having a heavy towel or blanket that you can kind of scoop them up in and carry them," he said.

You should never use a shovel to pick up an echidna as this can cause broken toes and spines.

Dr Pyne said if an echidna is known or thought to have been hit by a car, it was worthwhile having a vet check it out.

"A lot of the injuries that we see with echidnas that are hit by cars is their beak gets a fracture in it," he said.

"It may not be obvious to somebody kind of looking at them that they have a fracture in the beak because echidnas certainly curl themselves up in a tight ball."

It is also worth checking if an injured or dead echidna has a puggle (baby) on it.

"It's only for that first seven weeks that they actually have a puggle in the pouch, but it's still worth checking, absolutely, there could be one there," he said.

'Free termite inspection'

If you find an injured echidna on the side of the road, check nearby for a burrow where the puggle is, said John Grant, spokesperson for wildlife rescue organisation WIRES.

"Sometimes people will take them and transport them to somewhere else and let them go thinking they're doing the right thing," he said.

"Then of course the young will starve because the mother can't find its way back to them."

Mr Grant said echidnas could travel long distances and be away from their burrows for days as they foraged for food.

"People say, 'oh, we don't want them in our garden digging', but like snakes they're only ever passing through," he said.

"And the one wonderful thing they do is, their favourite food is termites, so you're actually getting a free termite inspection whenever you've got an echidna wandering through your place."

Story By | Sarah Motherwell