It is currently classified as critically endangered by the IUCN, and there had been no confirmed sightings between its initial collection in 1961 and November 2023, when the first video footage of a living individual was recorded.

[5] These authors established a new species, Z. attenboroughi (Attenborough's long-beaked echidna), to describe a single echidna specimen collected in 1961 at 1,600 metres (5,200 ft) near the top of Mount Rara, in the Cyclops Mountains of northern Dutch New Guinea, and named it in recognition of Attenborough's contribution to increased public appreciation of New Guinean flora and fauna through his documentary work.

[dubious – discuss] The species has five claws on each foot like the eastern long-beaked echidna, and has short, very fine and dense fur, reflecting its mountain-top habitat.

During the reproduction stage, the female lays the eggs after about eight days, with the offspring staying in their mother's pouch for around eight weeks or until their spines develop.

[8] Researchers from EDGE of Existence programme visiting Papua's Cyclops Mountains discovered burrows and tracks thought to be those of Zaglossus attenboroughi in 2007, and after further communication with locals, it was revealed that the species had possibly been seen as recently as 2005.