Rare albino echidna released back into wild after being hit by a car

Albion Park Vet Dr Cindy Jarrett named the special white guy Mr Spike and gave him the all clear to be placed back into bushland after several days of rehabilitation with WIRES volunteers.

A lack of melanin makes the creature albino and particularly rare, with only a handful of the mammals ever sighted in Australia.

The prickly little creatures have been around for about 50 million years but are considered quite mysterious by researchers and scientists, often burrowed into the ground or moving at a hasty speed of 2.3 kilometres per hour.

Exactly where the animal has been released will not be revealed so Mr Spike can go on without disturbances from unwanted spectators.