Platypus!
Monday, May 14, 2012
The End of our Platypus Journey
Our platypus journey together is now coming to a close. During the course of this blog series we have learned so much together about the platypus; its unique features and history (when it was first discovered it was thought to be a hoax!), its territorial and mating behaviors, its successful conservation story, its relevance in the media, and so much more. We have had the opportunity to see real pictures of platypus and platypus babies, as well as funny cartoon drawings and memes featuring our strange little friends. We have even gotten to see some funny videos featuring star platypus. Overall, it is my hope that this blog has helped spark your interest in not only the platypus but in researching and discovering a variety of animals as well as considering the impact our actions and behaviors have on their environment and ultimately their survival (check out the conservation status entry for more info!).
Thursday, May 10, 2012
Platypus in Entertainment
Between songs, spoof videos, memes, and TV shows like Phineas and Ferb,
the platypus has strangely become quite the hit in entertainment media! The
unique combination of features that the platypus possesses make it an easy
target for jokes and also lends itself to being a silly character in television
and clever meme spoofs. Phineas and Ferb for example, is an animated
childrens show that features a popular pet platypus. In fact, all the way back
in 1995 there was even a sitcom called the Platypus Man that featured comedian Richard
Jeni. There is actually even a website called the Psychology Student Platypus
that is a meme generator focused on pictures of platypus!
Sunday, May 6, 2012
Scholarly Article Review
Thursday, May 3, 2012
Personal Platypus Picture
(Source)
This is a picture of a platypus from the Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia taken by Tom McHugh. Unfortunately, the San Diego Zoo is not home to any platypus so I was unable to get a picture of the adorable yet strange creatures myself :( In even worse news, there actually are not any American zoos that house platypus; to see an authentic, live platypus you must travel outside the country. Even the countries that do have the platypus in their zoos, typically Australia and New Zealand, have strict limits on the number of zoos or universities that are allowed to house platypus as well as the number of platypus they are allowed to house. Apparently, having platypus in a zoo is not easy because of the difficulty of breeding the animals in captivity. In fact, only a few platypus babies have ever been born under such artificial conditions.
Additional Source
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Platypus; A Hoax?!
When the platypus was first discovered, it was actually
thought to be a made up creation done as either a prank or just a hoax by Chinese taxidermists
wanting credit for having discovered a potentially new species! The first
documented platypus discovery occurred in 1797 and was sent to England to be
reviewed and studied, where scientists at first believe it was a fake creature
made up of the parts of various other existing animals (duck, beaver, otter,
reptiles). Fossils were soon discovered, however, that proves the platypus to
be its own “genuine creature,” that did not “evolve from a common predecessor.”
(Source)
The platypus, above all others, poses a unique difficulty for evolutionary
scientists to solve and explain!
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