General Description

Body flattened and covered in short brown fur. Wide flat bill and webbed feet. Tail flat. Platypus are sometimes mistaken for Water Rats, Hydromys chrysogaster, when swimming on the surface. Males have a venomous spur on the hind foot. Up to 55 cm long (bill to tail).

Biology

Platypus use sensory organs in their bill to detect prey, which includes larval mayflies, caddisflies and small molluscs. The Platypus is one of the only mammals to lay eggs instead of giving birth to live young. Females lay two eggs in a nursery burrow, which then take two weeks to hatch.

Distribution

Eastern mainland Australia and Tasmania.

Habitat

Freshwater rivers and streams.

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