Platypus — printable fact sheet
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Platypus
Ornithorhynchus anatinus
The platypus is a unique, semi-aquatic mammal endemic to eastern Australia, including Tasmania. It is known for its distinctive duck-bill, webbed feet, and beaver-like tail, which make it easily recognizable. As one of the only egg-laying mammals (monotremes), the platypus exhib…
Did you know?
- The platypus was so strange-looking that early European scientists thought the first specimen sent to England was a hoax, believing it to be a stitched-together fake.
- Male platypuses possess venomous spurs on their hind legs, making them one of the few venomous mammals. Platypuses close their eyes, ears, and nostrils when underwater, relying on electroreception to locate prey. They lay eggs despite being mammals, a trait shared only with echidnas among modern mammals.
What I learned
Draw the platypus
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