The platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus), sometimes referred to as the duck-billed platypus, is a
Together … See more

Australian Aboriginal people name or have named the platypus in various ways depending on Australian indigenous languages and dialects. Among the names found: boondaburra, mallingong, tambreet, watjarang (… See more

In David Collins's account of the new colony 1788–1801, he describes "an amphibious animal, of the mole species", with a drawing.
The body and the broad, flat tail of the platypus ar… See more

The platypus is semiaquatic, inhabiting small streams and rivers over an extensive range from the cold highlands of Tasmania and the Australian Alps to the tropical rainforests of coastal Queensland as far north as th… See more

The platypus and other monotremes were very poorly understood, and some of the 19th century myths that grew up around them – for example, that the monotremes were "inferior" or quasireptilian – still endure. In 1947, … See more

Except for its loss from the state of South Australia, the platypus occupies the same general distribution as it did prior to European settlement of Australia. However, local changes and fragmentation of distribution … See more