The platypus, which lives in Australia, can easily be called one of the most amazing animals on our planet. When the first platypus skin first came to England (this happened in 1797), at first everyone decided that some joker had sewn a duck's beak to the skin of an animal similar to a beaver. When it turned out that the skin was not a fake, scientists could not decide to which group of animals to classify this creature. The zoological name for this strange animal was given in 1799 by the English naturalist George Shaw - Ornithorhynchus (from the Greek ορνιθορυγχος, “bird’s nose”, and anatinus, “duck”), a tracing-paper from the first scientific name - “platypus”, took root in the Russian language, but in modern English language the name platypus is used - “flat-footed” (from the Greek platus - “flat” and pous - “paw”).
When the first animals were brought to England, it turned out that the female platypus does not have visible mammary glands, but this animal, like birds, has a cloaca. For a quarter of a century, scientists could not decide where to classify the platypus - to mammals, birds, reptiles, or even to a separate class, until in 1824 the German biologist Johann Friedrich Meckel discovered that the platypus still has mammary glands and the female feeds her young with milk. It became clear that the platypus is a mammal. It was only proven in 1884 that the platypus lays eggs.
The platypus, together with the echidna (another Australian mammal), form the order Monotremata. The name of the order is due to the fact that the intestines and urogenital sinus flow into the cloaca (similarly in amphibians, reptiles and birds), and do not exit through separate passages.
In 2008, the platypus genome was deciphered and it turned out that the ancestors of modern platypuses separated from other mammals 166 million years ago. An extinct species of platypus (Obdurodon insignis) lived in Australia more than 5 million years ago. Modern look The platypus (Obdurodon insignis) appeared in the Pleistocene era.
Stuffed platypus and its skeleton
The body length of the platypus is up to 45 cm, the tail is up to 15 cm, and it weighs up to 2 kg. Males are about a third larger than females. The body of the platypus is squat, short-legged; the tail is flattened, similar to the tail of a beaver, but covered with hair, which noticeably thins with age. Fat reserves are deposited in the tail of the platypus. Its fur is thick, soft, usually dark brown on the back and reddish or gray on the belly. The head is round. In front, the facial section is extended into a flat beak about 65 mm long and 50 mm wide. The beak is not hard like that of birds, but soft, covered with elastic bare skin, which is stretched over two thin, long, arched bones. The oral cavity is expanded into cheek pouches, in which food is stored during feeding (various crustaceans, worms, snails, frogs, insects and small fish). Down at the base of the beak, males have a specific gland that produces a secretion with a musky odor. Young platypuses have 8 teeth, but they are fragile and quickly wear out, giving way to keratinized plates.
The platypus has five-fingered feet, adapted for both swimming and digging. The swimming membrane on the front paws protrudes in front of the toes, but can bend in such a way that the claws are exposed, turning the swimming limb into a digging limb. The membranes on the hind legs are much less developed; For swimming, the platypus does not use its hind legs, like other semi-aquatic animals, but its front legs. The hind legs act as a rudder in the water, and the tail serves as a stabilizer. The gait of the platypus on land is more reminiscent of the gait of a reptile - it places its legs on the sides of the body.
Its nasal openings open on the upper side of its beak. There are no auricles. The eyes and ear openings are located in grooves on the sides of the head. When an animal dives, the edges of these grooves, like the valves of the nostrils, close, so that under water its vision, hearing, and smell are ineffective. However, the skin of the beak is rich in nerve endings, and this provides the platypus not only with a highly developed sense of touch, but also with the ability to electrolocate. Electroreceptors in the beak can detect weak electrical fields, which arise, for example, when the muscles of crustaceans contract, which helps the platypus in searching for prey. Looking for it, the platypus continuously moves its head from side to side during underwater hunting. The platypus is the only mammal with developed electroreception.
The platypus has a remarkably low metabolism compared to other mammals; his normal body temperature is only 32 °C. However, at the same time, he is excellent at regulating body temperature. Thus, being in water at 5 °C, the platypus can maintain normal temperature body by increasing the metabolic rate by more than 3 times.
The platypus is one of the few venomous mammals (along with some shrews and gaptooths, which have toxic saliva).
Young platypuses of both sexes have the rudiments of horny spurs on their hind legs. In females, by the age of one year they fall off, but in males they continue to grow, reaching 1.2-1.5 cm in length by the time of puberty. Each spur is connected by a duct to the femoral gland, which produces a complex “cocktail” of poisons during the mating season. Males use spurs during mating fights. Platypus venom can kill dingoes or other small animals. For humans, it is generally not fatal, but it is very severe pain, and swelling develops at the injection site, which gradually spreads to the entire limb. Painful sensations (hyperalgesia) can last for many days or even months.
The platypus is a secretive, nocturnal, semi-aquatic animal that inhabits the banks of small rivers and standing reservoirs in Eastern Australia and the island of Tasmania. The reason for the disappearance of the platypus in South Australia appears to be water pollution, to which the platypus is very sensitive. It prefers a water temperature of 25-29.9 °C; not found in brackish water.
The platypus lives along the banks of reservoirs. Its shelter is a short straight hole (up to 10 m long), with two entrances and an internal chamber. One entrance is underwater, the other is located 1.2-3.6 m above the water level, under tree roots or in thickets.
The platypus is an excellent swimmer and diver, remaining underwater for up to 5 minutes. He spends up to 10 hours a day in water, since he needs to eat up to a quarter of his own weight in food per day. The platypus is active at night and at dusk. It feeds on small aquatic animals, stirring up the silt at the bottom of the reservoir with its beak and catching living creatures that have risen. They observed how the platypus, while feeding, turns over stones with its claws or with the help of its beak. It eats crustaceans, worms, insect larvae; less often tadpoles, mollusks and aquatic vegetation. Having collected food in its cheek pouches, the platypus rises to the surface and, lying on the water, grinds it with its horny jaws.
In nature, the platypus' enemies are few in number. Occasionally, he is attacked by a monitor lizard, a python, and a leopard seal swimming into the rivers.
Every year, platypuses go into a 5-10 day period. hibernation, after which they begin the breeding season. It lasts from August to November. Mating occurs in water. Platypuses do not form permanent pairs.
After mating, the female digs a brood hole. Unlike a regular burrow, it is longer and ends with a nesting chamber. A nest of stems and leaves is built inside; The female wears the material with her tail pressed to her stomach. Then she seals the corridor with one or more earthen plugs 15-20 cm thick to protect the hole from predators and floods. The female makes plugs with the help of her tail, which she uses like a mason’s spatula. The inside of the nest is always moist, which prevents the eggs from drying out. The male does not take part in building the burrow and raising the young.
2 weeks after mating, the female lays 1-3 (usually 2) eggs. Incubation lasts up to 10 days. During incubation, the female lies bent in a special way and holds the eggs on her body.
Platypus cubs are born naked and blind, approximately 2.5 cm long. The female, lying on her back, moves them to her belly. She does not have a brood pouch. The mother feeds the cubs with milk, which comes out through the enlarged pores on her stomach. Milk flows down the mother's fur, accumulating in special grooves, and the cubs lick it off. The mother leaves the offspring only for short time to feed and dry the skin; leaving, she clogs the entrance with soil. The cubs' eyes open at 11 weeks. Milk feeding lasts up to 4 months; at 17 weeks, the cubs begin to leave the hole to hunt. Young platypuses reach sexual maturity at the age of 1 year.
Decoding the platypus genome showed that the platypus immune system contains a whole developed family of genes responsible for the production of antimicrobial protein molecules cathelicidin. Primates and vertebrates have only one copy of the cathelicidin gene in their genome. It is likely that the development of this antimicrobial genetic apparatus was necessary to enhance the immune defense of barely hatched platypus pups, which undergo the first, rather lengthy stages of their maturation in brood burrows. The young of other mammals go through these stages of their development while still in the sterile womb. Being more mature immediately after birth, they are more resistant to the action of pathogenic microorganisms and do not require increased immune protection.
The lifespan of platypuses in the wild is unknown, but one platypus lived in a zoo for 17 years.
Platypuses were previously hunted for their valuable fur, but at the beginning of the 20th century. hunting them was prohibited. Currently, their population is considered relatively stable, although due to water pollution and habitat degradation, the platypus' range is becoming increasingly patchy. It was also caused some damage by the rabbits brought by the colonists, who, by digging holes, disturbed the platypuses, forcing them to leave their habitable places.
The platypus is an easily excitable, nervous animal. The sound of a voice, footsteps, or some unusual noise or vibration is enough to throw the platypus out of balance for many days, or even weeks. Therefore, for a long time it was not possible to transport platypuses to zoos in other countries. The platypus was first successfully exported abroad in 1922 to the New York Zoo, but it only lived there for 49 days. Attempts to breed platypuses in captivity have been successful only a few times.
Platypus on video:
In preparing the article, materials from Russian Wikipedia and gazeta.ru were used.
The platypus, which lives in Australia, can easily be called one of the most amazing animals on our planet. When the first platypus skin first came to England (this happened in 1797), at first everyone decided that some joker had sewn a duck's beak to the skin of an animal similar to a beaver. When it turned out that the skin was not a fake, scientists could not decide to which group of animals to classify this creature. The zoological name for this strange animal was given in 1799 by the English naturalist George Shaw - Ornithorhynchus (from the Greek ορνιθορυγχος, “bird’s nose”, and anatinus, “duck”), a tracing-paper from the first scientific name - “platypus”, took root in the Russian language, but in modern English the name platypus is used - “flat-footed” (from the Greek platus - “flat” and pous - “paw”).
When the first animals were brought to England, it turned out that the female platypus does not have visible mammary glands, but this animal, like birds, has a cloaca. For a quarter of a century, scientists could not decide where to classify the platypus - to mammals, birds, reptiles, or even to a separate class, until in 1824 the German biologist Johann Friedrich Meckel discovered that the platypus still has mammary glands and the female feeds her young with milk. It became clear that the platypus is a mammal. It was only proven in 1884 that the platypus lays eggs.
The platypus, together with the echidna (another Australian mammal), form the order Monotremata. The name of the order is due to the fact that the intestines and urogenital sinus flow into the cloaca (similarly in amphibians, reptiles and birds), and do not exit through separate passages.
In 2008, the platypus genome was deciphered and it turned out that the ancestors of modern platypuses separated from other mammals 166 million years ago. An extinct species of platypus (Obdurodon insignis) lived in Australia more than 5 million years ago. The modern species of platypus (Obdurodon insignis) appeared in the Pleistocene era.
Stuffed platypus and its skeleton
The body length of the platypus is up to 45 cm, the tail is up to 15 cm, and it weighs up to 2 kg. Males are about a third larger than females. The body of the platypus is squat, short-legged; the tail is flattened, similar to the tail of a beaver, but covered with hair, which noticeably thins with age. Fat reserves are deposited in the tail of the platypus. Its fur is thick, soft, usually dark brown on the back and reddish or gray on the belly. The head is round. In front, the facial section is extended into a flat beak about 65 mm long and 50 mm wide. The beak is not hard like that of birds, but soft, covered with elastic bare skin, which is stretched over two thin, long, arched bones. The oral cavity is expanded into cheek pouches, in which food is stored during feeding (various crustaceans, worms, snails, frogs, insects and small fish). Down at the base of the beak, males have a specific gland that produces a secretion with a musky odor. Young platypuses have 8 teeth, but they are fragile and quickly wear out, giving way to keratinized plates.
The platypus has five-fingered feet, adapted for both swimming and digging. The swimming membrane on the front paws protrudes in front of the toes, but can bend in such a way that the claws are exposed, turning the swimming limb into a digging limb. The membranes on the hind legs are much less developed; For swimming, the platypus does not use its hind legs, like other semi-aquatic animals, but its front legs. The hind legs act as a rudder in the water, and the tail serves as a stabilizer. The gait of the platypus on land is more reminiscent of the gait of a reptile - it places its legs on the sides of the body.
Its nasal openings open on the upper side of its beak. There are no auricles. The eyes and ear openings are located in grooves on the sides of the head. When an animal dives, the edges of these grooves, like the valves of the nostrils, close, so that under water its vision, hearing, and smell are ineffective. However, the skin of the beak is rich in nerve endings, and this provides the platypus not only with a highly developed sense of touch, but also with the ability to electrolocate. Electroreceptors in the beak can detect weak electrical fields, which arise, for example, when the muscles of crustaceans contract, which helps the platypus in searching for prey. Looking for it, the platypus continuously moves its head from side to side during underwater hunting. The platypus is the only mammal with developed electroreception.
The platypus has a remarkably low metabolism compared to other mammals; his normal body temperature is only 32 °C. However, at the same time, he is excellent at regulating body temperature. Thus, being in water at 5 °C, the platypus can maintain normal body temperature for several hours by increasing its metabolic rate by more than 3 times.
The platypus is one of the few venomous mammals (along with some shrews and gaptooths, which have toxic saliva).
Young platypuses of both sexes have the rudiments of horny spurs on their hind legs. In females, by the age of one year they fall off, but in males they continue to grow, reaching 1.2-1.5 cm in length by the time of puberty. Each spur is connected by a duct to the femoral gland, which produces a complex “cocktail” of poisons during the mating season. Males use spurs during mating fights. Platypus venom can kill dingoes or other small animals. For humans, it is generally not fatal, but it causes very severe pain, and swelling develops at the injection site, which gradually spreads to the entire limb. Painful sensations (hyperalgesia) can last for many days or even months.
The platypus is a secretive, nocturnal, semi-aquatic animal that inhabits the banks of small rivers and standing reservoirs in Eastern Australia and the island of Tasmania. The reason for the disappearance of the platypus in South Australia appears to be water pollution, to which the platypus is very sensitive. It prefers a water temperature of 25-29.9 °C; not found in brackish water.
The platypus lives along the banks of reservoirs. Its shelter is a short straight hole (up to 10 m long), with two entrances and an internal chamber. One entrance is underwater, the other is located 1.2-3.6 m above the water level, under tree roots or in thickets.
The platypus is an excellent swimmer and diver, remaining underwater for up to 5 minutes. He spends up to 10 hours a day in water, since he needs to eat up to a quarter of his own weight in food per day. The platypus is active at night and at dusk. It feeds on small aquatic animals, stirring up the silt at the bottom of the reservoir with its beak and catching living creatures that have risen. They observed how the platypus, while feeding, turns over stones with its claws or with the help of its beak. It eats crustaceans, worms, insect larvae; less often tadpoles, mollusks and aquatic vegetation. Having collected food in its cheek pouches, the platypus rises to the surface and, lying on the water, grinds it with its horny jaws.
In nature, the platypus' enemies are few in number. Occasionally, he is attacked by a monitor lizard, a python, and a leopard seal swimming into the rivers.
Every year, platypuses enter a 5-10-day winter hibernation, after which they enter the breeding season. It lasts from August to November. Mating occurs in water. Platypuses do not form permanent pairs.
After mating, the female digs a brood hole. Unlike a regular burrow, it is longer and ends with a nesting chamber. A nest of stems and leaves is built inside; The female wears the material with her tail pressed to her stomach. Then she seals the corridor with one or more earthen plugs 15-20 cm thick to protect the hole from predators and floods. The female makes plugs with the help of her tail, which she uses like a mason’s spatula. The inside of the nest is always moist, which prevents the eggs from drying out. The male does not take part in building the burrow and raising the young.
2 weeks after mating, the female lays 1-3 (usually 2) eggs. Incubation lasts up to 10 days. During incubation, the female lies bent in a special way and holds the eggs on her body.
Platypus cubs are born naked and blind, approximately 2.5 cm long. The female, lying on her back, moves them to her belly. She does not have a brood pouch. The mother feeds the cubs with milk, which comes out through the enlarged pores on her stomach. Milk flows down the mother's fur, accumulating in special grooves, and the cubs lick it off. The mother leaves the offspring only for a short time to feed and dry the skin; leaving, she clogs the entrance with soil. The cubs' eyes open at 11 weeks. Milk feeding lasts up to 4 months; at 17 weeks, the cubs begin to leave the hole to hunt. Young platypuses reach sexual maturity at the age of 1 year.
Decoding the platypus genome showed that the platypus immune system contains a whole developed family of genes responsible for the production of antimicrobial protein molecules cathelicidin. Primates and vertebrates have only one copy of the cathelicidin gene in their genome. It is likely that the development of this antimicrobial genetic apparatus was necessary to enhance the immune defense of barely hatched platypus pups, which undergo the first, rather lengthy stages of their maturation in brood burrows. The young of other mammals go through these stages of their development while still in the sterile womb. Being more mature immediately after birth, they are more resistant to the action of pathogenic microorganisms and do not require increased immune protection.
The lifespan of platypuses in the wild is unknown, but one platypus lived in a zoo for 17 years.
Platypuses were previously hunted for their valuable fur, but at the beginning of the 20th century. hunting them was prohibited. Currently, their population is considered relatively stable, although due to water pollution and habitat degradation, the platypus' range is becoming increasingly patchy. It was also caused some damage by the rabbits brought by the colonists, who, by digging holes, disturbed the platypuses, forcing them to leave their habitable places.
The platypus is an easily excitable, nervous animal. The sound of a voice, footsteps, or some unusual noise or vibration is enough to throw the platypus out of balance for many days, or even weeks. Therefore, for a long time it was not possible to transport platypuses to zoos in other countries. The platypus was first successfully exported abroad in 1922 to the New York Zoo, but it only lived there for 49 days. Attempts to breed platypuses in captivity have been successful only a few times.
An amazing natural creature, which is called God's joke - platypus. According to the parable, after the creation of the animal world, the Lord collected the remains of materials, connected the beak of a duck, the spurs of a rooster, the tail of a beaver, the fur of an echidna, and other parts. The result is a new animal, combining the features of reptiles, birds, mammals, even fish.
Description and features
The animal was discovered in the 18th century. Amazing view animal, description of the platypus sparked controversy over what to call this natural wonder. The Aborigines gave several local names, European travelers first used the names “duck-mole”, “water-mole”, “bird-beast”, but historically the name “platypus” was preserved.
The body on short legs is 30-40 cm long, including the tail 55 cm. Weight adult 2 kg. Males are heavier than females - they differ by about a third in weight. The tail is like a tail - with hair that thins over time.
The animal's tail stores fat. The wool is soft and dense. The color on the back is thick brown, the belly has a reddish tint, sometimes gray shade.
A rounded head with an elongated muzzle, turning into a flat beak, reminiscent of a duck's. It is 6.5 cm long and 5 cm wide. It is soft in structure and covered with elastic leather. At its base there is a gland that produces a substance with a musky odor.
At the top of the beak is the nose, or rather the nasal passages. The eyes and auditory openings are set on the sides of the head. There are no auricles. When the platypus dives into water, the valves of all organs close.
The auditory, visual, and olfactory organs are replaced by a kind of electrolocation - a natural ability to find prey during underwater hunting with the help of electroreceptors.
During the hunt, the animal continuously moves its beak to the sides. A highly developed sense of touch helps detect weak electric fields when crustaceans move. Platypus - animal unique, since although similar electroreceptors are found in the echidna, they do not play a leading role in obtaining food.
Young platypuses develop teeth, but they quickly wear down. In their place, a keratinized plate is formed. The cheek pouches near the expanded oral cavity are adapted for storing food. Small fish and crustaceans go there.
Universal paws are suitable for swimming and digging. The swimming membranes of the front paws extend for movement, but in the coastal zone they are tucked so that the claws are in front. Swimming limbs are transformed into digging devices.
The hind legs with undeveloped membranes serve as a rudder during swimming, and the tail serves as a stabilizer. On land, the platypus moves like a reptile - the animal's legs are on the sides of the body.
What class of animals does the platypus belong to?, it was not decided immediately. In the process of studying physiology, scientists established the presence of mammary glands in females - this became the basis for asserting that the unique creature belongs to mammals.
The animal's metabolism is also amazing. Body temperature is only 32°C. But in a cold body of water, at 5°C, due to the increase in metabolic processes several times, the animal maintains its normal body temperature.
The platypus has reliable protection - toxic saliva. This is important, since in general the animal is clumsy and vulnerable to the enemy. The poison is deadly to small animals, such as dingoes. The dose is too small to kill a person, but it is painful and causes swelling for a long time.
The animal’s venom is produced by a gland on the thigh, which passes to the horny spurs on the hind legs. The protective organ is provided only in males; the spurs of females disappear in the first year of life. Males need spurs for mating fights and protection from enemies.
So, dogs were sent to catch animals, which searched for platypuses not only on land, but also in water. But after a poisonous injection, the catchers died. That's why natural enemies There are not many platypus. He might become prey leopard seal, monitor lizard, python, which crawl into the animal’s hole.
Kinds
According to zoologists, together with echidnas, the order of monotremes represents platypus. What group of animals does it belong to? Based on the characteristics of this mammal, it was not immediately determined. The unique animal was classified as a member of the platypus family, of which it is the only representative. The platypus bears little resemblance even to its closest relatives.
In terms of oviposition, there is a similarity with reptiles. But the main difference in the milk method of feeding offspring gave grounds to classify the platypus as a mammal.
Lifestyle and habitat
Platypus populations live in Australia, the islands of Tasmania, and Kunguru in the area of the southern coast of the mainland. The extensive distribution range from Tasmania to Queensland has now shrunk. The animal has completely disappeared from areas of South Australia due to pollution of local waters.
Platypus in Australia inhabits various natural reservoirs, coastal zones of small rivers. The animals' habitat is fresh water with a temperature of 25-30°C. Platypuses avoid brackish waters; they are sensitive to various pollutants.
The animal swims and dives beautifully. Immersion in water lasts up to 5 minutes. Staying in a pond is up to 12 hours a day. The platypus thrives in wetlands, lakes, high mountain streams, and tropical warm rivers.
The semi-aquatic lifestyle is associated with a favorite site - a body of water with a quiet current among thickets on raised banks. Ideal place habitat near a calm river passing through the forest.
Increased activity occurs at night, in the twilight of the morning and evening. This is hunting time, since the need for daily replenishment of food supplies is up to a quarter of the animal’s own weight. During the day, the animals sleep. The platypus searches for prey by turning over stones with its beak or paws, stirring up muddy masses from the bottom.
The animal's burrow, straight, up to 10 meters in length, is the main shelter. The construction of an underground passage necessarily provides an internal chamber for rest and breeding, and two exits. One is located under the roots of trees, in dense thickets at a height of up to 3.6 m above the water level, the other is certainly at the depth of the reservoir. The entrance tunnel is specially designed with a narrow opening to keep water out of the platypus' fur.
In winter, animals hibernate for a short time - 5-10 days in July. The period occurs on the eve of the breeding season. The meaning of hibernation has not yet been reliably established. It is possible that this is the platypus’ need to accumulate vital energy before mating season.
Endemics of Australia are attached to their habitat, sedentary, and do not move far from their lair. The animals live alone and do not create social connections. Experts call them primitive creatures, not noted for any intelligence.
An extreme degree of caution has been developed. In places where they are not disturbed, platypuses approach the city limits.
Once upon a time, platypuses were exterminated for their beautiful fur, but this fishery object was banned from the beginning of the 20th century. Populations have decreased and the range has become mosaic. Australians are making efforts to protect platypuses in nature reserves. Difficulties arise in the relocation of animals due to their increased fearfulness and excitability.
Breeding in captivity is not successful. It's hard to find a more alarming mammal than platypus - what animal capable of leaving the hole due to any unusual noise? The voice and vibration, unusual for platypuses, knock the animals out of their established rhythm of life for several days, sometimes weeks.
Rabbit breeding in Australia has caused great harm to the platypus population. The rabbits' digging of holes disturbed the sensitive animals and prompted them to leave their usual places. The risk of extinction due to the characteristics of mammals is high. Hunting for it is prohibited, but changes in the habitat have a detrimental effect on the fate of the platypus.
Nutrition
The daily diet of this amazing animal includes various organisms: small aquatic animals, larvae, tadpoles, mollusks, crustaceans. The platypus stirs up the bottom with its paws and beak - it collects the rising living creatures in its cheek pouches. In addition to the living inhabitants of the reservoir, aquatic vegetation also gets there.
On land, all prey is crushed by horny jaws. In general, the platypus, an unpretentious eater, only needs a sufficient amount of food. He is an excellent swimmer who, with good speed and maneuverability, is able to collect the required number of edible organisms thanks to electrolocation.
Particular gluttony is observed in females during lactation. There are examples where a female platypus ate a volume of food equal to her weight per day.
Reproduction and lifespan
The reproductive system of males is practically no different from primitive mammals, while the female is closer to birds or reptiles in the functioning of her ovaries. The breeding period after a short hibernation occurs from August to the end of November.
To attract the attention of the female, the male has to bite her tail. The animals move in a circle in one of four courtship rituals, as if looking closely at each other, then mate. Males are polygamous and do not form stable pairs.
The construction of the brood burrow is carried out by the female. The male withdraws from arranging the nest and caring for the offspring. The hole is different from the usual shelter longer, the presence of a nesting chamber. The female brings the material to create a nest with her tail pinched near her stomach - these are stems and leaves. The entrance is blocked from water and uninvited guests with earthen plugs 15-20 cm thick. Locks are made using the tail, which the platypus wields like a trowel.
2 weeks after mating, eggs appear, usually 1-3 pieces. In appearance, they resemble the clutches of reptiles - with a light leathery shell, approximately 1 cm in diameter. Constant humidity in the nest does not allow the laid eggs to dry out.
They are connected to each other by an adhesive substance. Incubation lasts 10 days. At this time, the female lies nearby and almost never leaves the hole.
The cubs pierce the shell with a tooth, which falls off, appear naked, blind, approximately 2.5 cm in length. The female takes the hatched crumbs to her stomach. Milk comes out through the abdominal pores, the babies lick it off. Milk feeding lasts 4 months. The eyes open after 11 weeks.
At 3-4 months, the cubs make their first forays out of the hole. While breastfeeding, the female sometimes goes off to hunt and covers the hole with a clod of soil. Platypuses become fully independent and sexually mature at 1 year of age. The life of amazing animals in nature has not been studied enough. In nature reserves it lasts approximately 10 years.
Evolutionists have not yet solved the riddle of the name platypus, what animal was before him at the evolutionary stage of development. There is complete confusion on this issue. Platypus in the photo gives the impression of a funny toy, but in life it amazes experts even more, proving with its very creature that our nature still keeps many secrets.
The platypus is the only representative of the family.
Habitat
This unusual and very interesting animal lives in Eastern Australia and on the island of Tasmania. It prefers to settle in rivers and lakes, digs long narrow burrows up to 10 meters with two entrances. One entrance is underwater, the second is securely hidden in the thickets of bushes, or in the roots of trees on land.
Appearance
It has a squat body, up to 50 cm long, weighing up to 2 kg, short paws with membranes and sharp claws. Females are much smaller than males. On the front paws, the membrane bends, and the claws are freed for digging the ground. There are spurs on the hind legs (the length of one spur is 15 mm), which, if necessary, secrete poison from the femoral gland.
Only males have such formidable weapons; females do not have spurs. Each paw has five toes. The tail is thickened, flattened and covered with sparse hair. Oddly enough, it stores fat reserves in its tail, which is 10-15 cm long.
The animal's head is round with an elongated front part, which ends in a beak (its length is 65 mm and its width is 50 mm). The soft beak is covered with elastic black skin, which covers two thin arched bones. There are cheek pouches in the mouth where food is stored in reserve. Instead of teeth, they have horny plates in their mouths.
The animal's fur is dense and dense, usually brown or dark brown in color. The belly is yellow or gray. The animal's undercoat retains thermal insulation, and upper layer fur coats, protects from getting wet. The ears and eyes are located on the sides of the head, and there are a pair of nostrils on the top of the beak. There are no external ears; they are hidden inside in the grooves of the head.
When diving into water, the eyes, ears and nostrils close. When hunting, he uses his sixth sense. The fact is that there are nerve endings on the beak that pick up the electric field of small river inhabitants.
Nutrition
Favorite food is insect larvae, worms, crustaceans and molluscs. With its beak it examines the bottom, lifting up silt and river inhabitants, and only then deftly catches them. Hidden in cheeks more food, he emerges and calmly eats food, grinding it with horny teeth. The secretive and cautious platypus leads a semi-aquatic and solitary lifestyle. Each animal has its own territory. He spends 10 to 12 hours a day in water, and eats almost as much food as he weighs.
Lifestyle
It is active mainly at night, sometimes appearing at dusk. He is an excellent swimmer and a skilled diver. It swims by paddling with its front paws, steers with its hind paws, and its tail acts as a stabilizer. Can stay under water for up to 5 minutes.
Reproduction
The breeding season occurs at the end of July, beginning of September. This depends on the location of the individual. In the struggle for territory and for a female, males often fight. But after a short courtship and mating, the male leaves the young lady alone and does not take any further part in the life of the offspring.
The female begins to prepare a hole for nursing the cubs. She digs a new hole with her front paws, up to 20 meters long, which ends in a nesting chamber. She makes the nest itself out of soft grass and stems. She seals the entrance with an earthen plug so that no one will disturb it.
After mating, after two weeks the female will lay 1 – 3 eggs. It incubates them, curled up around them, for 10–12 days. Naked and blind cubs, 2.5 cm long, are born. The mother lies on her back and helps the babies climb onto their stomachs so that they can eat milk. Milk emerges through the pores on the belly and flows out in streams, and the cubs lick it off. In a few days, you can go out and mom can have some food, because all this time she was in “seclusion.”
When leaving the hole, she will also carefully close the entrance with earth from predators. The female will be away for a short time; her children need careful care. The babies' eyes will open after 11 weeks and they will be covered with fur. Mothers will feed on milk for up to four months. They will make their first exit from the burrow at the age of 17 weeks and try to dive into the water. And soon they will be able to lead an independent life.
The platypus is an amazing animal that lives only in Australia, on the island of Tasmania. This strange miracle belongs to mammals, but, unlike other animals, it lays eggs like an ordinary bird. Platypuses belong to oviparous mammals - rare species animals that survive only on the Australian continent.
History of discovery
Strange creatures can boast unusual story their discoveries. The first description of the platypus was given by Australian pioneers in the early 18th century. For a long time science did not recognize the existence of platypuses and considered the mention of them an inept joke by Australian residents. Finally, at the end of the 18th century, scientists at a British university received a parcel from Australia containing the fur of an unknown animal, similar to a beaver, with paws like an otter, and a nose like an ordinary domestic duck. Such a beak looked so ridiculous that scientists even shaved the hair on the face, believing that Australian jokers had sewn a duck nose to the skin of a beaver. Finding no seams or traces of glue, the pundits simply shrugged their shoulders. No one could understand where the platypus lived or how it reproduced. Only a few years later, in 1799, the British naturalist J. Shaw proved the existence of this miracle and brought the first detailed description a creature that was later given the name "platypus". Photos of the bird beast can only be taken in Australia, because this is the only continent on which these exotic animals currently live.
Origin
The appearance of platypuses dates back to those distant times when modern continents did not exist. All land was united into one huge continent - Gondwana. It was then, 110 million years ago, that platypuses appeared in terrestrial ecosystems, taking the place of recently extinct dinosaurs. Migrating, platypuses settled throughout the continent, and after the collapse of Gondwana, they remained to live on a large area of the ex-continent, which was later named Australia. Due to the isolated location of their homeland, the animals have retained their original appearance even after millions of years. Different kinds Platypuses once inhabited the vast expanses of the entire land, but only one species of these animals has survived to this day.
Classification
For a quarter of a century, the leading minds of Europe puzzled over how to classify the overseas beast. Particularly difficult was the fact that the creature had a lot of characteristics that are found in birds, animals, and amphibians.
The platypus stores all its fat reserves in the tail, and not under the fur on the body. Therefore, the tail of the animal is solid, heavy, and is capable of not only stabilizing the movement of the platypus in the water, but also serves as an excellent means of defense. The weight of the animal fluctuates around one and a half to two kilograms with a length of half a meter. Compare with a domestic cat, which, with the same dimensions, weighs much more. Animals do not have nipples, although they produce milk. The temperature of the bird beast is low, barely reaching 32 degrees Celsius. This is much lower than that of mammals. Among other things, platypuses have another striking feature: literally peculiarity. These animals can infect with poison, which makes them quite dangerous opponents. Like almost all reptiles, the platypus lays eggs. What makes platypuses similar to snakes and lizards is their ability to produce poison and the arrangement of their limbs, like those of amphibians. The gait of the platypus is amazing. It moves by bending its body like a reptile. After all, its paws do not grow from below the body, like those of birds or animals. The limbs of this either a bird or an animal are located on the sides of the body, like those of lizards, crocodiles or monitor lizards. High on the animal's head are the eyes and ear openings. They can be found in depressions located on each side of the head. There are no auricles; when diving, it covers its eyes and ears with a special fold of skin.
Mating games
Every year, platypuses hibernate, which lasts 5-10 short periods. winter days. After this comes the mating period. Scientists have recently discovered how the platypus reproduces. It turns out, like all the main events in the life of these animals, the courtship process takes place in water. The male bites the tail of the female he likes, after which the animals circle each other in the water for some time. They do not have permanent pairs; platypus children remain only with the female, who herself raises and raises them.
Waiting for the Cubs
A month after mating, the platypus digs a long, deep hole, filling it with armfuls of wet leaves and brushwood. The female carries everything she needs, wrapping her paws around her and tucking her flat tail under. When the shelter is ready, future mom fits into the nest, and covers the entrance to the hole with earth. The platypus lays its eggs in this nesting chamber. The clutch usually contains two, rarely three, small whitish eggs, which are glued together with a sticky substance. The female incubates the eggs for 10-14 days. The animal spends this time curled up in a ball on the masonry, hidden by wet leaves. At the same time, the female platypus can occasionally leave the hole in order to have a snack, clean itself and wet its fur.
Birth of platypuses
After two weeks of residence, a small platypus appears in the clutch. The baby breaks the eggs with an egg tooth. Once the baby emerges from the shell, this tooth falls off. After birth, the female platypus moves the young onto her abdomen. The platypus is a mammal, so the female feeds its young with milk. Platypuses do not have nipples; milk from the enlarged pores on the mother’s belly flows down the fur into special grooves, from where the young lick it off. The mother occasionally goes outside to hunt and clean herself, while the entrance to the hole is blocked with earth.
Up to eight weeks, the cubs need the warmth of their mother and can freeze if left unattended for a long time.
At the eleventh week, the eyes of small platypuses open; after four months, the babies grow up to 33 cm in length, grow hair and completely switch to adult food. A little later they leave the hole and begin to lead an adult lifestyle. At the age of one year, the platypus becomes a sexually mature adult.
Platypuses in history
Before the first European settlers appeared on the shores of Australia, platypuses had virtually no external enemies. But their amazing and valuable fur made them an object of hunting for white people. The skins of platypuses, black-brown on the outside and gray on the inside, were at one time used to make fur coats and hats for European fashionistas. And the local residents did not hesitate to shoot the platypus for their own needs. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the decline in the number of these animals acquired alarming proportions. Naturalists sounded the alarm, and the platypus joined the ranks. Australia began to create special reserves for amazing animals. The animals were taken under state protection. The problem was complicated by the fact that the places where the platypus lives must be protected from human presence, since this animal is shy and sensitive. In addition, the massive spread of rabbits on this continent deprived platypuses of their usual nesting places - their holes were occupied by long-eared aliens. Therefore, the government had to allocate huge areas, fenced off from outside interference, in order to preserve and increase the platypus population. Similar reserves have played decisive role in maintaining the numbers of these animals.
Platypuses in captivity
Attempts have been made to introduce this animal into zoos. In 1922, the first platypus arrived at the New York Zoo and lived in captivity for only 49 days. Due to their desire for silence and increased timidity, the animals never mastered zoos; in captivity, the platypus lays eggs reluctantly, and only a few offspring were obtained. There are no recorded cases of human domestication of these exotic animals. Platypuses were and remain wild and distinctive Australian aborigines.
Platypuses today
Now platypuses are not considered. Tourists enjoy visiting places where the platypus lives. Travelers willingly publish photos of this animal in their stories about Australian tours. Images of bird animals serve hallmark many Australian products and manufacturers. Along with the kangaroo, the platypus has become a symbol of the Australian continent.