Harry feels the sharp end

Some individuals have no idea about royal protocol. Pugsley should have been told that jabbing a Prince with razor-sharp spikes is no way to behave. Mind you, Pugsley can be forgiven for her lack of respect. She is, after all, an echidna - a sort of large spiny anteater found only in Australia.

Arriving at the start of a three-month stay, Prince Harry visited Taronga Zoo in Sydney, where he asked staff if he could handle the creature. But he ignored the instructions of zoo staff to keep his grip on Pugsley's soft underside and was soon howling with pain. Within seconds, the prince was begging handler Christi Lomb to take the animal back.

The prince, in Australia for the first time, met two teenage fans who had got up before dawn to see him. Sisters Brooke Brim, 17, and Jessica 15, pleaded with him for a kiss but only received a handshake. Harry, blushing, told them: "Sorry. I've been told I'm not allowed to do that."

Zoo spokeswoman Helen Pantenburg said: "Pugsley was a bit of a naughty girl for needling the prince on her big day.

"Echidnas have very sharp needles all over their backs. There is a special way of holding them by the soft part of their underbelly, but unfortunately, Prince Harry got it wrong and got spiked a few times."

Harry had better luck with a party of schoolchildren visiting the zoo, which has spectacular views of Sydney Harbour and the Opera House, for a sleepover night. The children, from the Illawarra Sports High School in Woollongong, south of Sydney, had spent the previous

evening on a night tour observing possums, bats and lions and tigers. Harry, 19, who is in Australia for part of his gap year and plans to work as a jackeroo, rounding up cattle and sheep, chatted with the children and asked them about the animals they had seen during their educational tour.

Teenage student David Watts said: "We think he's pretty cool. He asked us what we were doing here and what the animals were like."

Classmate Emma Latham said: "The prince asked us some questions about our wildlife because it is the first time he's ever been here. We were all really excited because we only found out two hours before that we were going to meet him this morning."

Pupil Sophie Shultz, aged 12, said: "All the girls are Harry fans. We think he's gorgeous. They should let him stay in Sydney so he can come to our school."

The prince is due to join the Army after his gap year. Colleen Harris, the official press officer for the office of the Prince of Wales said: "The prince will go on to spend time in the outback learning about farming and agriculture on various cattle stations, where he will be mustering cattle and sheep on horseback and working as a jackeroo."

Asked if he would have time to go to the pub she replied: "It would be nice, now and again, to sample Australian hospitality - so I hope he has some fun as well as working hard. This trip is supposed to be fun. Prince Harry is a young man who wants to broaden his experience and his horizons.

"The reason he wanted to come to Australia is that he heard a lot about it from his father, who loves the place and has very fond memories of his time here."