Fascinating Facts About the Platypus

The platypus is one of the most bizarre and intriguing animals in the world. It seems to be a combination of many other different animals. The platypus has a tail and fur similar to a beaver, a bill and webbed feet like a duck, it produces venom like an insect, lays eggs like a chicken, but nurses its young with milk! A total hodgepodge of different species. What exactly is this strange thing called a platypus and where did it come from? Another planet, maybe? Is it a sophisticated hoax put together by practical jokers? No. It's very real. Even though an old joke says that the platypus is evidence that God has a sense of humor.

Below are a plethora of additional facts about the platypus that you probably weren't aware of.

The platypus is an excellent swimmer and spends most of its day hunting for food in lakes and rivers. Their webbed feet propel them along and their beaver tail helps guide the way. They have folds of skin that cover both their ears and eyes so that water doesn't get into them.

Platypuses can grow fairly large, reaching a length of about 16 inches for males (with 6 inch tails) and weighing around three pounds, while female platypuses are about 10 centimeters smaller than males. The average lifespan of a platypus is about 12 to 15 years.

The platypus lives around lakes and rivers close to Australia, mainly the Eastern side, and in Tasmania. The platypus is regularly known as a symbol and icon for Australia and its image is on one side of the Australian twenty-cent coin.

What does a platypus eat? A variety of different things, but mainly shellfish, worms, larvae, shrimp, and insects, which they put into pouches in their mouths and then mash up to aid digestion. Because they don't have teeth, little rocks that the platypus scoops up with their food from the bottoms of lakes and rivers act as teeth, which they use to grind up their meals. The platypus also stores fat in its tail for later use!

The platypus's scientific name is 'ornithorhynchus anatinus' and Europeans discovered it in 1798. They first thought the animal was an elaborate hoax constructed by taxidermists in Asia - thinking someone had stitched a duck bill onto a beaver.

Remember when I said that a platypus produces venom like an insect? It actually has a lot in common with a wasp because the males have stingers on their feet filled with deadly poison which they use to inject their enemies! There are spurs on its ankles that produce a powerful supply of toxin; but don't worry, if you ever get stung by a platypus it will not kill you since the venom isn't harmful to humans, although it is extremely painful. Sometimes the pain can be so excruciating it will last for days or even months. The female doesn't produce any venom at all, she only has small buds where the toxic spurs should be. But why does a platypus need toxin? What hunts a platypus? Its main predators are hawks, snakes, large water rats, eagles, owls, and crocodiles.

Platypuses can run on land after they retract the webs on their feet. They have long nails that dig into the earth for traction and help propel them forward. They also use these strong nails to build burrows to live in near the water. Another weird fact about platypuses is that they build two burrows: one to live in, and another for having babies (which involves laying eggs and incubating them until they hatch). Platypuses produce about three young per year, and baby platypuses are extremely small and have to be taken care of for four months before being allowed to swim. The platypus is one of only five mammals that actually lays eggs instead of going through the birthing process (the scientific name for mammals such as this is 'monotreme').

The legs of a platypus are similar to a reptile in that instead of being located underneath their body, they are found on the sides of their torsos.

The platypus also has an ability known as electroreception, which is quite extraordinary. When the muscles of an animal or a human contract, they produce faint electrical fields; and platypuses (and other animals with electroreception) can actually detect this electricity using special receptors built into their duck-like bills. When you see a platypus moving its head from side to side as it swims, it's hunting and trying to detect electrical fields with its bill sensors!

At one time hunters killed the platypus for its valuable fur.

Other names in the past that were given to the platypus by British settlers included "watermole," "duckmole," and "duckbill." Now people commonly use the phrase "duck-billed platypus," but it isn't necessary since there is only one type of platypus in existence.

If you would like to see some platypuses in action, go to youtube.com and do a search on the name and see what you can find.

Sources:

Platypus Profile, National Geographic,

http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/platypus.html

Facts About Platypus, iloveindia.com, http://lifestyle.iloveindia.com/lounge/facts-about-platypus-1460.html

Platypus, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Platypus