Territorial Behavior

The platypus is a territorial animal that uses the venomous spurs on its hind legs to defend itself. Females, however, do not have the venomous spurs and are in fact actually not quite as territorial as the male platypus. Males are not involved in raising the young, which results in females being more territorial regarding the protection of their babies. Furthermore males fight each other in pursuit of females during the mating season. This is another time in which the male platypus uses its venomous spurs for their personal gain.  Solitary animals, the platypus is generally a shy creature that spends most of its time in their personal burrows in the riverbanks with entrances only slightly higher than water level. Unfortunately, there isn’t very much known about the territorial behavior of platypus because of their solitary nature. Some of the most concrete indications of their territorial behavior comes from reports of fighting between platypus in specific areas.

While there isn’t a whole lot of information about the platypus territorial behavior I did learn some interesting facts while I was researching . Apparently, one really prominent aspect of the platypus behavior is grooming, which they perform meticulously in the water occasionally, but mostly on a surface out of the water like a log or a rock. I also sadly discovered that the platypus is sadly now extinct in South Australia, and that different regions have different names for the platypus. For example, some indigenous people call them “boondaburra, mallangong, tambreet,” or “tohunbuck”.

FUN PLATYPUS VIDEO OF THE WEEK!!: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6JzvzUXwZ0

http://www.apex.net.au/~mhumphry/austwild.html

http://www.wildlife.org.au/wildlife/speciesprofile/mammals/platypus.html

http://www.reptilepark.com.au/animalprofile.asp?id=159

Pet Platypus Not For Sale

Unfortunately, it is illegal to have a pet platypus.  Besides the fact that it is against the law to own a platypus as a pet, it is nearly impossible due to their sensitivity to change in their environment. Additionally, the male platypus is actually a venomous animal that comes complete with a spur on its hind foot that delivers enough venom to cause serious pain to a human and even kill a very small child! The Platypus is no longer considered an endangered species, but it is listed as “vulnerable,” which contributes to the illegality of owning one as a pet. Despite this common knowledge, there are still a few sites that list “Platypus for Sale” on the internet…It’s almost understandable how someone might find themselves on one of those sites wishing for a pet platypus because as babies, THEY ARE SO STINKING CUTE!

Platypus foraging behavior and eating habits!

The platypus’ eating habits and behaviors are very unique and cool! Platypus eat freshwater shrimp, larvae, worms, water snails, aquatic insects, and sometimes the eggs of frogs and fish, and they dedicate around 12 hours each day simply to finding food! The way the platypus locates its food is by using its bill. The platypus bill is really fascinating! It has hundreds of receptors, which are able to detect touch and electric currents created by the movements of their prey, which is known as electroreception.  This is really important for the platypus because when they are underwater hunting for their prey they actually have their eyes, ears, and nostrils closed so they are completely dependent on the capabilities of their bill.  The way the platypus uses its prey detecting bill capabilities is by moving its head back and forth to locate any prey in the surrounding area. Once the platypus has located and captured its prey, it then stores the food in the pouches of its cheeks until the pouches become entirely full. At this point, the platypus swims back up to the surface (using its webbed feet to propel itself) where it separates the food from any sand that it picked up in its mouth while capturing its prey. Another cool thing about the platypus is that adults actually do not have teeth! Platypus young have three molars but lose them when they enter adulthood. In order to eat, they actually grind their food between the pads they have in place of teeth. These pads in the platypus’ mouth are not actually in the bill, however, the platypus mouth is located underneath its bill. Lastly, the platypus uses its tail for fat storage. In fact, the platypus stores up to 50% of its body fat in its cute tail!

FUN PLATYPUS VIDEO OF THE WEEK!!:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0igE8QJizKA

http://www.thejunglestore.com/Platypuses

http://library.thinkquest.org/5053/Australia/duckbillplatypus.html

http://bioweb.uwlax.edu/bio203/s2007/benrud_ryan/what_does_a_platypus_eat.htm

Evolutionary Background

The platypus is a semi-aquatic animal found uniquely in Australia and Tasmania. Although it is classified as a mammal, it is deemed a monotrome, which refers to a mammal that lays eggs. Its family is Ornithorhynchidae and its genus is Ornithorhynchus; both of which the platypus is the only member, meaning that there are no other representatives in the platypus family or genus! In fact, up until 2008, the platypus genome remained largely a mystery to the scientific community. The platypus, which possesses both reptilian and mammalian features, is officially classified as a mammal. Scientists have been very interested in decoding this particular mammal’s genome and discovering its evolutionary history because it is able to give us a unique insight into how mammals could have potentially come to develop their particular traits.

Fortunately a study published in the journal Nature was able to unravel some of the mystery surrounding this unique mammal’s genome.  The study’s analysis found that the platypus evolved into the first “offshoot of the mammalian family tree.” (National Geographic News) This means that the platypus’ genes possess unique information about the period of time when reptiles evolved into mammals. One of the interesting discoveries made in this study is that the platypus actually possesses the genes responsible for lactation even though they do not give live birth, but rather lay eggs. The implication of this discovery is in fact quite large because it tells us that lactation actually evolved long before giving live birth did!

While the platypus is completely unique in its family and doesn’t have any close relatives persay, there are four species of Echidnas (Spiny Anteaters) that are also monotremes and could therefore be considered a close relative to the Platypus because of their unique characteristic of laying eggs while still being classified as mammals.


FUN PLATYPUS VIDEO OF THE WEEK!!: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PA_3zRIS54

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/05/080507-platypus_2.html

http://www.seaworld.org/animal-info/animal-bytes/animalia/eumetazoa/coelomates/deuterostomes/chordata/craniata/mammalia/monotremata/order.htm

http://www.learnanimals.com/platypus/