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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
Where can you find platypus footprints?
Platypus footprints may be seen very rarely. If they are seen, it will only be alongside freshwater creeks and rivers in the eastern states of Australia.
Do crocodiles love to eat platypuses?
Platypuses have been known to be taken by freshwater crocodiles in north Queensland. Generally, platypuses and crocodiles do not occupy the same habitat, as platypuses require freshwater and Estuarine crocodiles live in saltwater habitats. Also, crocodiles and platypuses only have their habitat overlap in northern Queensland.
Where are platypus footprints?
Platypus footprints are rarely seen. They are likely to be visible only near freshwater creeks and rivers in eastern Australia.
No. America does not have platypuses. Platypuses are endemic to eastern Australia.
Yes, a platypus dives.
A platypus will make hundreds of dives every day to search for food. When actively seeking food, it can only stay underwater for one to two minutes, so it needs to frequently resurface in order to breathe.
What are the names of the only two egg-laying mammals in existence?
The only two egg-laying mammals in existence are the platypus and the echidna, which are classed as monotremes. They are still classified as mammals because they feed their young on mothers' milk - a characteristic unique to mammals alone.
There are just three known species of egg-laying mammals, or monotremes. They are the platypus and short-beaked echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus) of Australia, and the long-beaked echidna (Zaglosssus bruijni) of Papua New Guinea. The echidna is sometimes called the spiny anteater, and there are several sub-species of the long-beaked echidna: the Western long-beaked echidna, Sir David's long-beaked echidna and the Eastern long-beaked echidna.
The platypus is not poached. A century ago it was legally hunted, but protection laws have been effective in restoring the platypus population to healthy figures.
Platypuses are carnivores. They are predators; they eat small water animals such as aquatic insect larvae, fresh water shrimp, annelid worms, yabbies and crayfish.
Platypuses catch their food in the water. They may make hundreds of dives in a single day. The bill of a platypus has sensitive electroreceptors which pick up tiny nerve and electrical impulses generated by crustaceans and other animals that inhabit the bottom of the creek or river. The platypus then uses its bill to shovel away the dirt, and find the food.
Platypuses do not have teeth, but hard bony plates which they use to grind the food.
Why aren't platypuses in US zoos?
Australia has very strict controls on the keeping of platypuses for either display purposes or research. Even within Australia, there are very few sabctuaries where platypuses are permitted to be kept - so controls are even stricter for overseas zoos.
Which male mammal has a poisonous spike that sticks out of its hind leg?
There is no male mammal that has a poisonous spike that sticks out of its hind leg.
However, adult males platypuses have a hollow 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. The spur is connected to a venom gland in the platypus's thigh.
Are platypuses' tails poisonous?
No part of a platypus is 'poisonous', but male platypuses have a venomous spur on each of their hind legs, through which they can deliver a poison strong enough to kill a small dog, and to cause almost paralysing agony to an adult human. Platypus venom contains a protein which lowers blood pressure, also inducing shock.
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.
No, the platypus is a carnivore. It feeds on annelid worms, tiny shrimp and annelid worms that live at the bottom of freshwater creeks and rivers.
The average length of a platypus's bill is 5.8cm for males and 5.2cm for females.
A spur is a hollow spike on the male platypus' hind ankle which is attached to a venom gland within the animal's thigh. The venom can cause agonising and paralysing pain.
How do platypuses fight enemies?
Platypuses do not have enemies as such: they have predators. They are not at all well equipped to fight enemies, but avoid them by swimming and hiding in their burrows.
Platypuses are monotremes and their nearest relatives are Echidnas.
What is the population of the platypus?
The platypus is not endangered in Australia, while the IUCN, or International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, lists the Platypus on its Red List as Least Concern. It is unknown what the actual population of platypuses is. The closest estimate is that platypus numbers are in the low thousands.
Not many surveys of platypus populations have been done, and even those have only been carried out in selected rivers on Australia's eastern coast. Recent research suggests that the average platypus population density along some of the better quality streams in part of the Great Dividing Range in Victoria is only around one to two animals per kilometre of channel. Besides this, the only information available is that, apart from in South Australia where platypuses can no longer be found in the wild, the platypus population is believed to be the same as it was at the beginning of European settlement in Australia.
There also appear to be very few platypuses living in zoos outside of Australia. Even in Australia, a limited number of Australian zoos and universities hold permits to keep platypuses in captivity for the purpose of either display or research.
How does a platypus break all the rules of nature?
Nature does not have rules.
Man has expectations.
The platypus breaks no rules of nature, because it is a perfectly natural creature in and of itself. All of its adaptations are natural.
What are the adaptations and how does it help the platypus survive?
The platypus has a number of unique adaptations which enable it to live in a semi-aquatic ecosystem. It is found near freshwater creeks and rivers, within bushland, alpine or sub-tropical areas.
The ecosystem helps the platypus survive because it provides the food this animal needs. The platypus dives into creeks and rivers for its food. Its bill has sensitive electroreceptors which pick up tiny nerve and electrical impulses generated by crustaceans and other animals that inhabit the bottom of the creek or river. The platypus then uses its bill to shovel away the dirt, and find the food. It does not have teeth, but hard bony plates which it uses to grind the food.
The platypus has webbed feet which help it to swim, and which have a retracting webbed membrane which can expose the claws, enabling the platypus to effectively dig burrows in riverbanks for shelter, and the webbing membrane retracts for that purpose, but spreads between its toes when it needs to swim - which it needs to do to get its food.
During mating season, the female platypus digs a separate chamber at the end of her burrow. The eggs are laid here, and once hatched, the mother "closes off" the chamber with a wall of leaves when she leaves, to protect the young. The wall of leaves is also designed in such a way that it helps remove excess water from the platypus when she returns, thus keeping the chamber as dry as possible.
A male platypus has a venomous spur on each of its rear ankles. These spurs inject a venom which causes agonising, paralysing pain to the recipient, and is an effective means of defence against any predators.
By definition, mammals have live young, with the exception of the three species of monotremes.
These include the platypus and the short-beaked echidna, native to Australia, and the long-beaked echidna, native to New Guinea (there are three sub-species of the long-beaked echidna). These animals lay eggs, but still feed their young on mother's milk.
Eutheria (placental mammals) and marsupials do not lay eggs.
How do platypuses move on land and lay eggs they are mammals?
Platypuses (and echidnas) are monotremes, or egg-laying mammals. Like all mammals, they feed their young on mothers' milk. The defining trait of a mammal is to have mammary glands, to produce milk for its young. The platypus produces its milk from numerous glands over its underside, unlike other mammals which have teats.
Platypuses have just one external opening, the cloaca, for both waste elimination and for reproduction. The cloaca leads to the urinary, faecal and reproductive tracks, all of which join internally, and it is the orifice by which the female monotreme lays her eggs.
As for how platypuses move on land - these animals spend more time on land than in the water. The platypus has four legs. When on land, it walks. When in water, it swims. Its feet have retractable webbing between the toes. This means it can swim effectively, but it can also dig on land because the webbing retracts to expose the sharp claws.
How many monotreme mammals are there?
Monotremes are mammals that lay eggs. There are just two known monotremes, the platypus and the echidna, although there are two species of echidna.
- Platypus - indigenous to Australia alone
- Short-beaked echidna, sometimes known as the spiny anteater - found in Australia and a small region in New Guinea.
- Long-beaked echidna - found in the New Guinea highlands
There are three sub-species of the long-beaked echidna: the Western long-beaked echidna, Sir David's long-beaked echidna and the Eastern long-beaked echidna. How_many_types_of_monotremes_are_there
How many platypi are in the world today?
None. "Platypi" is not a legitimate word.
It is unknown what the actual population of platypusesis. The closest estimate is that platypus numbers are in the low thousands.
Not many surveys of platypus populations have been done, and even those have only been carried out in selected rivers on Australia's eastern coast. Recent research suggests that the average platypus population density along some of the better quality streams in part of the Great Dividing Range in Victoria is only around one to two animals per kilometre of channel. Besides this, the only information we have is that, apart from in South Australia where platypuses can no longer be found in the wild, the platypus population is believed to be the same as it was at the beginning of European settlement in Australia.
There also appear to be very few platypuses living in zoos outside of Australia. Even in Australia, a limited number of Australian zoos and universities hold permits to keep platypuses in captivity for the purpose of either display or research.
Answer There is no way we can x-ray you on here. Do yourself a favor and stop playing a guessing game, go see a doctor.
Why did god make the platypus?
Deities have nothing to do with the evolution of the platypus. Platypuses are monotremes, an early format of mammal which gave all the characteristics of mammals except for the bear living young"
