The Fossil Record
Based on a fragment of lower jaw found in opal deposits
at Lightning Ridge in New South Wales, a type of ancestral platypus (Steropodon galmani) existed alongside
the dinosaurs about 110 million years ago.
In 1991, a fossil tooth belonging to a different kind
of ancient platypus (originally described as Monotrematum sudamericanum but
now probably regarded as another Obdurodon species, see below) was discovered in the Patagonian desert
of Argentina. The tooth was found in sediments deposited over 60 million
years ago, at the time when Australia and South America were still joined
as part of the southern supercontinent Gondwana.
Fossils belonging to three other extinct platypus species
(Obdurodon insignis, Obdurodon dicksoni, and Obdurodon sp. A) have been found in Australian sediments deposited between
25 and 15 million years ago, while a leg bone from the first close relative
of the modern platypus (Ornithorhynchus sp.) has been dated to about 4.5
million years ago.
The earliest known remains of the platypus in its current
form (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) date back to around 100,000 years ago.
The platypus is sometimes described as a "living fossil"
because of this ancient lineage and its combination of mammalian and reptilian
features.
Aboriginal legend
According to Aboriginal legend, the first platypus were
born after a young female duck mated with a lonely and persuasive water-rat.
The duck's offspring had their mother's bill and webbed feet and their
father's four legs and handsome brown fur.
Scientific recognition
In 1799, the platypus was first described by a British
scientist, Dr George Shaw. His initial reaction to this original specimen
was that it was an elaborate hoax. He even took a pair of scissors to the
pelt, expecting to find stitches attaching the bill to the skin.
Platypus names
Early British colonists in Australia called the platypus
a "water mole". Prior to the arrival of European settlers, Aboriginal people
had many different names for the animal, including "boondaburra", "mallingong"
and "tambreet".
Dr Shaw, in his scientific description of 1799, gave
the name Platypus anatinus, from Greek and Latin words meaning "flat-footed, duck-like".
However, when it became known that Platypus had already been used to name a group of beetles, a new term
had to be adopted. The official scientific name became and remains Ornithorhynchus anatinus, with the first word meaning "bird-like
snout".
Although the name "duckbill" was widely used as a popular
description for the animal, the abandoned scientific name "platypus" gradually
became the accepted common name for the species.
The preferred plural of platypus is either "platypus"
or "platypuses", depending on which dictionary you consult. (We use the
former for the sake of simplicity.) The term "platypi" is no longer considered
to be valid.
There is no accepted term - equivalent to pup or cub
- to describe a baby platypus. One possible name recently suggested is a
"platypup".
In recent years, the inappropriate word "puggles" for baby platypus has been
commonly used. This term was applied to baby echidnas some years ago
because of their resemblance to Puggles, an American soft-toy character. (It
is understood that the toy company concerned may have considered legal
action to protect its registered trade-mark in relation to unauthorised
usage). For some reason, this name is now being applied to baby platypus.
This is both ill-informed (baby platypus and echidnas don't look very much
alike, once they get past the initial post-hatching "jelly-bean" stage, and
so baby platypus don't much resemble Puggles) and possibly illegal (see above).
There is also no collective noun - equivalent to a pride
of lions - for platypus. Platypus are solitary animals that do not form
social groups or family units.
