– The platypus is the only living representative of its family and genus – Platypuses have 10 sex chromosomes (5 pairs) – most mammals typically have just two (i.e. – Male platypuses have venomous spurs on their back ankles and so are one of the few venomous mammals in the world. – Male platypuses have a bifurcated penis T he adults grind their food with hard pads (made from keratin) that replace the teeth – Platypuses lay eggs, have very small stomachs and adults have no teeth. – Australia once sent a platypus to Wintson Churchill, however it died before getting there (link here) – Platypuses dive limit is around 2-3 minutes
– Platypuses can visit several burrows in one night
A platypus penis skin#
– Platypus young drink their mothers milk by licking it off their skin – Platypuses avoid streams in logged areas – Discoveries in platypus milk could help fight superbugs (news link here) – Some Aboriginal dreamtime stories explain that the platypus came about from the mating of a large water rat with a duck. – Some aboriginal names for the platypus include Matakupay, Mallangong, Tambreet, Gaya-dari, Boondaburra, Lare-re-lar – Early European biologists originally thought they were a fake animal – Localised extinction events which isolate populations and so fracturing genetic diversity – Chemical and biological river pollution – Predation due to shallow water and lack of cover on banks – Trauma from fishing lines, fishing hooks, and other plastic pollution like girls hair ties and rubber bands (in which they get their heads caught in)
– Drowning from entanglement in recreational enclosed yabby traps (such as in opera house nets) and fishing lines – Sudden increases in river flows as a result of flash floods, dam releases, and urban storm water run off – So called ‘River improvements’ that impact the suitability of streams and rivers for platypus – Forestry and agricultural practices that impact bank erosion, bed destabilisation and increase sedimentation – Reduced river flows as a result of drought, increased residential and commercial water withdrawal and the creation of dams – Habitat destruction from urban and rural development – Creating large river impoundments that are too deep for platypus to feed. Recently listed as vulnerable to extinction in Victoria, some scientists now believe that they could be nationally threatened.
A platypus penis upgrade#
Once incredibly abundant along the east coast of Australia as well as in Tasmania, their conservation status was recently upgrade from ‘least concern’ to ‘ vulnerable‘. Over the last 30 years their available habitat has shrunk by over 20%, or about 200,000 square kms – that’s an area nearly three times the size of Tasmania. In other words, a species that once it’s gone, its gone and there is no other species even remotely close left. What’s an EDGE species you ask? One that is Evolutionary Distinct and Global Endangered.
Sadly it looks like it is moving towards becoming an EDGE species. The platypus (Ornithorynchus anatinus) is a unique and iconic egg laying mammal that is the only living representative of its family and genus.
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