ABOUT THE PLATYPUS

WHY IS THE PLATYPUS SO SPECIAL?

The platypus is undoubtedly an amazing animal:

• Fossils indicate that a type of prehistoric platypus existed more than 110 million years ago, in the time of the dinosaurs.  Because of its unusual blend of mammalian and reptilian features, the platypus has sometimes been described as a living fossil or an evolutionary missing link.

• The platypus is a warm-blooded, furry mammal that lays and hatches eggs!  A female platypus produces a clutch of one to three eggs in late winter or spring, incubating them in an underground burrow.  The eggs are 15-18 millimetres long and have a whitish, papery shell like those of lizards and snakes.

• The platypus is the only Australian mammal known to be venomous.  Adult males have a sharp curved spur on each hind leg that can inject poison produced by a special gland located in the upper thigh.  Platypus venom causes excruciating pain and localised swelling in humans, but is not considered life-threatening.  Males are believed to use their spurs mainly as weapons when competing for mates.

• A platypus bill is fleshy and flexible at the edge, and is covered by soft skin that feels like fine glove leather.  The bill is equipped with thousands of highly sensitive electro-receptors as well as pressure sensors and touch receptors.  The platypus automatically shuts both its eyes and ears when it dives, and so relies almost entirely on its bill to find food and navigate underwater.

• The platypus is superbly adapted for life in the water.  To help keep the animal warm even when swimming all night in near-freezing conditions, platypus fur is denser than that of river otters or polar bears.  As well, platypus fur has two layers - a woolly undercoat and longer guard hairs - which work together to trap air next to the skin, keeping most of the body effectively dry at all times.

For more information about platypus biology and ecology, visit the Australian Platypus Conservancy main website: www.platypus.asn.au .