Platypus an Aussie Icon

[Tina Greco - Melbourne]

[Rubystars]

I think they're very cool. That "beak" picks up on prey in the mud which the platypus eats. They're extremely suited to their environment.

The platypus is also a monotreme, a very primitive type of reptile like mammal. Like reptiles, it has one hole for both reproduction and waste, called a cloaca, and it lays eggs.

The males have a venomous spur that causes pain so bad that morphine doesn't help. You have to ask for a "nerve block" which is the only thing that will stop the horrible pain.

[Ari]

They look like beavers with duck masks!

[newman]

They're not as rare as many think. They're quite plentiful in creeks in the suburbs around large cities. They're just shy and evasive.

[Sarah]

They're not as rare as many think. They're quite plentiful in creeks in the suburbs around large cities. They're just shy and evasive.

Aren't they poisonous! If i'm not wrong they have a venomous claw behind their heels.

[Tina Greco - Melbourne]

They're not as rare as many think. They're quite plentiful in creeks in the suburbs around large cities. They're just shy and evasive.

Aren't they poisonous! If i'm not wrong they have a venomous claw behind their heels.

Yes very poisonous