The platypus is an amazing animal that lives only in Australia, on the island of Tasmania. The outlandish miracle belongs to mammals, but, unlike other animals, it lays eggs like an ordinary bird. Platypuses are egg-laying mammals, a rare species of animals that have survived only on the Australian continent.
Discovery history
Strange creatures can boast of an unusual story of their discovery. 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 to be an inept joke of 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 those of otters and a nose like that of an ordinary domestic duck. Such a beak looked so ridiculous that scientists even shaved off the hair on the muzzle, believing that Australian pranksters sewed a duck nose to the skin of a beaver. Finding no seams, no traces of glue, pundits just shrugged. Nobody couldto understand neither where he lives, nor how the platypus breeds. Only a few years later, in 1799, the British naturalist J. Shaw proved the existence of this miracle and gave the first detailed description of the creature, which was later given the name "platypus". A photo of a bird animal can only be taken in Australia, because this is the only continent on which these exotic animals currently live.
Origin
The appearance of platypuses refers to those distant times when there were no modern continents. 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 the recently extinct dinosaurs. Migrating, platypuses settled throughout the mainland, and after the collapse of Gondwana, they remained to live on a large stretch of the ex-continent, which was later called Australia. Due to the isolated location of their homeland, the animals have retained their original appearance even after millions of years. Various types of platypus once inhabited the vastness 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 animal. Of particular difficulty was the fact that the creature turned out to have a lot of signs that are found in birds, animals, and amphibians.
The platypus stores all its fat reserves in the tail, and not under the hair on the body. Therefore, the tail of the beast is solid, heavy,is able not only to stabilize 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 animal is low, barely reaching 32 degrees Celsius. This is much lower than the body temperature of birds and mammals. Among other things, platypuses have another striking feature in the literal sense. These animals can hit with poison, which makes them quite dangerous opponents. Like almost all reptiles, the platypus lays eggs. Platypuses have in common with snakes and lizards and the ability to produce poison, and the arrangement of the limbs, like in amphibians. Amazing walk of the platypus. He moves by bending his body like a reptile. After all, his paws do not grow from the bottom of the body, like birds or animals. The limbs of this either a bird or an animal are located on the sides of the body, like in lizards, crocodiles or monitor lizards. High on the head of the animal are the eyes and ear holes. They can be found in depressions located on each side of the head. The auricles are absent, while diving, he closes his eyes and ears with a special skin fold.
Despite the fact that the platypus lays eggs like a bird, moves like a reptile, and dives like a beaver, scientists have recognized the milk with which animals feed their cubs as the basis for classification. And then they came to the final conclusion. The platypus is a mammal, monotreme, oviparous, lives and breedsonly on the Australian continent. In the scientific classification, he received the name Ornithorhynchus anatinus. Years of disputes have come to an end.
Habitats
Australia is the only continent where the platypus lives. You can guess where this animal lives if you just look at its flat tail and webbed paws. The gloomy shores, swamps and swamps of Eastern Australia are a paradise for platypuses. Their entire life cycle is associated with water. Bird animals live in long burrows located on the banks of rivers. Any dwelling of the platypus has two exits, one of which is necessarily under water. The burrow is several meters long and ends with a nesting chamber. Platypuses plug burrow exits with earth to retain moisture and to protect against predators.
Lifestyle
Unusual animals feed on small river dwellers. For hunting, these animals use their miracle nose. Despite the outward similarity, this organ in the animal is arranged differently than the solid bird's beak. The nose of the animal is formed with the help of two bones in the form of an arc. These bones are thin and long, and it is on them that the bare, like rubber, skin of the platypus is stretched. With its nose, the animal plows the river bottom in search of food. The front paws are a universal organ that is maximally adapted to the life cycle of an animal. Between the fingers on the forelimbs there are membranes, with the help of which the platypus deftly and quickly moves under water. The animal squeezes its fingers - claws protrude outward, with which it is convenient to plow the riversoil or dig a hole during the mating season. The hind legs are much weaker than the front ones. The platypus uses them as a steering wheel when moving in the water. A flat tail serves as a stabilizer for swimming and diving. The animal rows with its front paws, wriggling in the water with its whole body. Moves slowly on land, only able to walk or run for short distances.
Eating the platypus
The platypus is quite a serious enemy for the animals it hunts. Bird animals are insatiable - they must eat a volume of food equal to a fifth of their own weight per day. Therefore, the hunting of the animal continues for 10-12 hours a day. At first, the beast lies motionless on the water, floating with the flow. But now the prey is discovered, the beast instantly dives and catches the victim. The predator can stay under water for only 30 minutes, but thanks to its amazing paws, it develops great speed and maneuvers perfectly. The predator keeps its eyes and ears closed in the water, orienting itself in search of food only by smell. The platypus appears, where its favorite food lives: insect larvae, worms, various crustaceans, small fish and some types of algae. The platypus hides everything caught in the mouth, in the cheek pouches. When the sacs become full, the platypus comes ashore or floats to the surface of the water. While resting, the animal grinds what it has caught with its horny jaws, which serve as its teeth.
Hunting methods
When hunting, the platypus is guided by the electric field that all living creatures produce. Electroreceptors are located onamazing nose of the animal. With the help of them, the animal is perfectly oriented in the water and catches prey. There are cases when, when hunting for platypuses, poachers used traps that produce a weak electric current, and animals mistook the trap for prey.
Surprisingly, platypuses are rare mammals that can produce poison. Only males can boast of this unusual weapon. During the mating season, the toxicity of the poison increases. There is poison in the spurs, which are located at the end of the hind legs. The toxicity of the poison is not enough to kill a person, but the painful burn that occurs at the site of the lesion heals only many weeks later. The poison is intended for hunting and protection from predators. Although the platypus has few natural enemies, monitor lizards, pythons, and leopard seals may be interested in its meat.
Mating games
Each year, platypuses hibernate for 5-10 short winter days. This is followed by a mating period. How the platypus breeds, scientists have found out relatively recently. It turns out that, like all major events in the life of these animals, the courtship process takes place in the 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 couples, the children of the platypus remain only with the female, who herself is engaged in their cultivation and education.
Waiting for Cubs
A month after mating, the platypus digs a long deep hole, filling it with armfuls of wet leaves and brushwood. The female wears everything necessary, covering her paws andtucking his flat tail underneath. When the shelter is ready, the expectant mother is placed in the nest, and the entrance to the hole is covered with earth. In this nesting chamber, the platypus lays its eggs. 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 may occasionally leave the hole in order to have a snack, clean itself and moisten the fur.
Birth of platypuses
After two weeks of residence, a small platypus appears in the clutch. The baby breaks eggs with an egg tooth. After the baby comes out of the shell, this tooth falls off. After birth, the female platypus moves the cubs onto her abdomen. The platypus is a mammal, so the female feeds her cubs with milk. Platypuses do not have nipples, milk from the enlarged pores on the parent's stomach flows down the wool into special grooves, from where the cubs lick it. The mother occasionally goes outside to hunt and clean herself, while the entrance to the hole is clogged with earth. Until eight weeks, the cubs need their mother's warmth and can freeze if left unattended for a long time.
At the eleventh week, the eyes of little 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 an adult sexually mature individual.
Platypuses in history
Before the appearance of the first European settlers on the shores of Australia, platypuses had practically no external enemies. But the amazing and valuable fur made them an object of trade for white people. Skins of platypuses, black-brown on the outside and gray on the inside, at one time were used to make fur coats and hats for European fashionistas. Yes, and the locals did not hesitate to shoot the platypus for their needs. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the decline in the number of these animals became rampant. Naturalists sounded the alarm, and the platypus joined the ranks of endangered animals. Australia began to create special reserves for amazing animals. Animals were taken under state protection. The problem was complicated by the fact that the places where the platypus lives must be protected from the presence of a person, since this animal is shy and sensitive. In addition, the mass distribution of rabbits on this continent deprived platypuses of their usual nesting places - their holes were occupied by eared aliens. Therefore, the government had to allocate huge areas, protected from third-party interference, in order to preserve and increase the population of platypuses. Such reserves have played a decisive role in the conservation of the number of these animals.
Platypuses in captivity
Attempts have been made to resettle this animal in zoos. In 1922, the first platypus arrived at the New York Zoo and lived in captivity for only 49 days. Because of their desire for silence and increased shyness, animals have not mastered zoos; in captivity, the platypus reluctantly lays eggs,offspring were obtained only a few times. No cases of domestication of these exotic animals by humans have been recorded. Platypuses were and remain wild and distinctive Australian Aborigines.
Platypus today
Now platypuses are not considered endangered animals. Tourists enjoy visiting the places where the platypus lives. Travelers willingly publish photos of this animal in their stories about Australian tours. Images of a bird animal serve as a hallmark of many Australian goods and manufacturing companies. Along with the kangaroo, the platypus has become a symbol of the Australian continent.
