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Platypuses
One of Australia's most unique and unusual native animals, the platypus is an egg-laying mammal which lives on land and hunts for food in the freshwater creeks and rivers of eastern Australia. Once incorrectly thought to be the most primitive mammal, it is now regarded as a superb example of adaptation. Questions and answers about platypuses can be found here.
996 Questions
A platypus is a mammal that lays eggs in order to reproduce - a monotreme. It is one of only two mammals known to do so, the other being the echidna. The eggs are soft-shelled and leathery, rather than hard-shelled like birds' eggs.
What are predators of the platypus?
Platypuses have few predators in the wild, because they mainly hunt underwater and live in hidden shelters, from tropical north regions to the sub-alpine areas of southern Australia.
The introduction of red foxes as a predator for rabbits may have had some impact on platypus numbers on the mainland. Feral cats are another platypus predator, but the platypus's principal enemies are humans. Humans used to hunt them for their fur, but they are now protected. The danger is now not from hunting, but from destruction of their environment. Also, the use of fishing nets in freshwater creeks and rivers resulted in large numbers being drowned, but this practice has been banned. So, technically, man is not the platypus's predator because he does not eat it, but he is a threat to the platypus. The platypuses were and are affected by man but not eaten by him.
Natural predators of the platypus include snakes, water rats, goannas, spotted quolls, eels, hawks, owls and eagles. In the north of its range, dingoes are another predator. Lower platypus numbers in far northern Australia are possibly due to predation by crocodiles. On occasion, large freshwater eels (which may be twice the length of a platypus) have been thought to take platypuses.
Why are platypuses' feet webbed?
Platypuses have webbed feet to aid their swimming. Their two front feet propel them through the water with a rowing motion; the hind feet assist the tail with steering. Having webbed feet gives them more stamina for the many dives they must make. Their feet are not webbed all the time - the webbing is retractable. This enables platypuses to use their claws to dig their burrow.
Why is the platypus a symbol of Australia?
One of the theories proposed for the existence of platypuses only in Australia is because of the lack of predators in Australia. Platypuses, on the whole, are relatively defenceless creatures, despite the presence of a venomous spur on the make's hind ankle. They would be no match for larger predators such as those found on other continents.
Do platypuses undergo metamorphosis?
No. Platypuses are mammals, not amphibians. No mammals undergo metamorphosis. Baby platypuses are hatched from eggs, and as the creatures grow, they gradually resemble their parents more and more.
What does a platypus lay its eggs in?
A female platypus lays her eggs in a dry chamber at the end of a long burrow which has been dug into the bank of a freshwater creek or river. The entrance to the burrow is above the waterline so that the burrow and nesting chamber both remain dry, and the burrow may extend up to 30 metres into the bank. The chamber at the end is just big enough for the female to curl around her eggs to incubate them for the necessary ten days. She will often create plugs of earth along the length of the burrow to prevent snakes entering the chamber. She also lines sections of the burrow with dry leaves to capture the water from her fur so she does not make the nesting chamber wet.
What is a female platypus called?
A female platypus is called a "sow." Platypuses are unique mammals that lay eggs, and they are native to eastern Australia, including Tasmania. The female platypus typically lays one to three eggs at a time and incubates them for about ten days before they hatch.
What makes a platypus different?
Many things make the platypus unique:
- It is one of just two egg-laying mammals (monotremes) in the world.
- It has a bill which vaguely resembles that of a duck, but which is equipped with special electroreceptors, which enable the platypus to sense electriccal impulses from tiny crustaceans and insect larvae at the bottom of creeks and rivers. It feeds on these creature, scooping it up with its bill, and crushing it between grinding plates, rather than teeth.
- It has retractable webbing between its claws. this enables it to swim in the water, but retract when it needs to dig a burrow.
Why do duck billed platypus have webbed feet?
Over the years, animal kind has evolved. First, organisms started as a mere mass of cells in a body of water. There were no crocodiles, humans, fish, or any other type of animal thriving on Earth. Over time, though, certain organisms began to form. The water organisms formed the very first, because the masses of cells originally started in water. Examples of these are paramecium and microscopic protists. Centuries and centuries could go by until another living species came to be. As the cell masses began to grow and expand, more complicated organisms began to come; such as different kinds of fish, sharks, and whales. Soon, the cells started to adapt to life on land. Organisms could now leave the water for certain periods of time, like frogs, ducks, and crocodiles. More and more centuries and decades would pass. But eventually, animals' cells were able to adapt to full life on land, no water needed to stay moist. Of course, things still needed to drink water, though; it's the essential nutrient for life. Anyway, at one point in time, animals that were adjusting to life on land probably did have webbed feet. Humans, on the other hand, are way too far down the line to have them. Humans are the most evolved organism on Earth. Dogs, bears, birds, cats, giraffes, elephants, lions, tigers, monkeys, gorillas, and the list could go on forever. All of these organisms are between the development of ducks and humans; therefore, it would be impossible for humans to have webbed feet. If humans formed directly before or after ducks or anywhere even close to them, there would be a large chance of humans having webbed feet. But because of the long list of organisms, and the order in which they formed, it would be next to impossible for humans to have the characteristics of ducks.
In addition to that, humans don't need them. If humans had come to be in an environment in which they had swim constantly or stay afloat in water, there would also be a higher chance that we would have webbed feet, or even flippers or scales. For our cells would, over time, adjust to this environment. But again, the sequence in which we formed makes these things unnecessary and improbable. We don't need to swim in water to live, why would we need webbed feet?
Why does the platypus have a burrow?
Platypuses live in burrows dug into riverbanks and creek banks. These creeks may run through dense rainforest, or through eucalyptus bushland, so the appearance of their habitat varies. Platypuses generally obscure the entrance to their burrows with plants.
Do platypuses protect their eggs?
Platypuses are one of two types of mammals which lay eggs. Unlike the echidna, the other egg-laying mammal (or monotreme), the platypus does not develop a temporary pouch to incubate the eggs.
The mother platypus prepares a chamber at the end of a burrow especially for the purpose of protecting the young. After she lays one to three eggs, which have already developed within her body for 28 days, she curls her body around the eggs to incubate them for another ten days.
After hatching, the mother platypus feeds her young on milk secreted from glands, rather than from teats. The young are blind, hairless and completely vulnerable. They are suckled by the mother for 3-4 months, during which time she only leaves them to forage for food. As she leaves the burrow, the mpther platypus makes several thin plugs made of soil along the length of burrow; this helps to protect the young from predators which would enter the burrow during the mother's absence. When she returns, she pushes past these plugs, thereby forcing water from her fur and helping to keep the chamber dry.
The male platypus does not take any part in raising the young platypuses.
What does a platypus feel like?
The platypus's bill is not hard like the beak of a bird. It is flexible, and made out of a leathery skin, so it feels soft and leathery to the touch.
Platypuses do not live in dams like beavers do, or dams that are artificially created for storing water.
Platypuses dig their burrow in riverbanks or creek banks, usually underneath an overhang of earth or tree roots, in order to disguise the entrance.
Why do mosquitoes frogs and house flies lay many eggs at one time?
Some species often lay excessive amounts of eggs because it is not uncommon for the majority of these eggs to not survive into development. Laying large numbers of eggs increases the chances of some of them hatching and surviving into adulthood.
What is Perry the platypus' full name?
Perry the Platypus does not have a professor, but he has a boss named Major Francis Monogram.
Is a platypus an ectotherm or endotherm?
The platypus is a warm blooded, egg laying, semi aquatic, mammal which means they can generate their own body heat.
Being a mammal (specifically, a monotreme), a platypus is warm blooded. All mammals are warm blooded.
Is the platypus an invertebrate?
It is a vertebrate because it has a spinal column in its skeletal system. Also it is a mammal, although it lays eggs, and every mammal (or other warm-blooded creature, like a bird) is a vertebrate.
What phylum and class does a platypus belong to?
The platypus is a mammal, sub class Prototheria.
Like the echidna, it is a monotreme, which is an egg-laying mammal. This puts it in the order monotremata.
Its scientific name is Ornithorhynchus Anatinus.
The seven levels of classification are:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Monotremata
Family: Ornithorhynchidae
Genus: Ornithorhynchus
Species: anatinus
How long can a platypus survive under water?
Platypuses can hold their breath for a maximum of 1-2 minutes at a time during normal dives, so must make hundreds of dives every day to obtain enough food to eat.
If threatened, they can lie still and are capable of holding their breath for a maximum of eight to ten minutes.
Can platypus venom kill a human?
Platypuses do not have a poisonous bite, but adult males have venomous spurs on their ankles. Apart from several species of shrews and the Cuban solenodon, platypuses are the only venomous mammals.
Male platypuses have a venomous spur on each of their hind legs, through which they can deliver a venom strong enough to kill a small dog, and to cause almost paralysing agony to an adult human. It is possible that a very small child could be killed (though a tiny child would be unlikely to engage in behaviour threatening to a platypus), and it is also possible that the shock of the pain in an unhealthy, weakened adult could well result in their death. Also, platypus venom contains a protein which lowers blood pressure, also inducing shock.
People who have been "spurred" by a platypus report that the pain is strong enough to cause vomiting that may last for days, weeks or sometimes even months. The pain cannot be relieved by morphine and other standard pain-killing drugs. It seems the only way it can be relieved is through anaesthesia of the main nerve from the spur site.
Female platypuses do not have venom, but they are born with spurs. These spurs fall off by the time the young female is about a year old.
How is the platypus endangered?
The platypus, although found only in the country of Australia (which includes the island state of Tasmania) is notendangered. It is not listed on the IUCN Redlist (endangered species list).
There was a time when the platypus was under threat, being particularly prized for its fur years ago. In the past it came closer to extinction but it now has protection by law in the National Parks and Wildlife Act of 1974 (from hunters and fishermen), and the population has grown back to a healthy size. However, there are concerns regarding the destruction of their habitat and awareness of this problem is increasing. The use of fishing nets is still something of a problem, even though it is illegal now to use fishing nets in freshwater rivers and creeks, as the platypuses can become entangled.
The Australian Government lists the platypus as "common but vulnerable". The International Union for Conservation of Nature lists the platypus as "least concern". Platypuses are now strictly protected by law. The platypus is vulnerable because of habitat loss through deforestation, dams and irrigation projects. They have disappeared from South Australia.
Tasmanian platypuses are subject to a disease caused by the fungus Mucor amphibiorum, which has fortunately not migrated to the mainland. Affected animals often develop skin lesions or ulcers, and the biggest threat to their survival arises from secondary infection. This can affect the platypus's ability to maintain body temperature and to hunt properly for food on the bottom of rivers and creeks.
Does every mammal give birth to live young?
All mammals on earth give birth to their young instead of laying eggs.
however the Duck-billed platypus from Australia is the only exeption to this, as it is the only mammal on earth that lays eggs instead of giving birth.
Does a platypus live on land or in water?
The platypus lives on land, but must live next to water. It digs burrows above the waterline of freshwater creeks and rivers. The platypus is an air-breathing mammal which must live on land, but it hunts for its food in water. It is dependent on water for its food, and can hold its breath for an average of 1-2 minutes for each dive it makes.
Yes. The Platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) is a semi-aquatic mammal endemic to eastern Australia and Tasmania. Together with the long-beaked and short-beaked echidna, it is one of the three species of monotremes, the only mammals that lay eggs instead of giving birth to live young. Like placental mammals and marsupials, the young are suckled by the mother.
Whilst some may say it has a unique appearance similar to that of a beaver with a duck's head, it really does not look like that at all. It is covered in fur, and its head is flat and streamlined for swimming under the water's surface. Its bill is different in shape to that of a duck, so even the term "duck-billed platypus" is a misnomer. It has webbed feet, claws and a flat tail, and lives in burrows in riverbanks.
The bizarre appearance of this egg-laying, duck-billed mammal baffled naturalists when it was first discovered, with some considering it an elaborate fraud. It is one of the few venomous mammals; the male Platypus has a spur on the hind foot which delivers a poison capable of killing a small dog or causing severe pain to humans. The unique features of the Platypus make it an important subject in the study of biology.
