The platypus is a bizarre and fascinating creature with a mix of traits from different animal groups. It’s one of the few mammals that lay eggs, and it has a duck-like bill, webbed feet, and a ...

The platypus has a range of features that make it quite unlike any other animal. With a large bill, a paddle-like tail, webbed feet and a furry body, this funny-looking animal produces venom that ...

The male platypus has sharp spurs on its hind legs that can deliver a painful, sometimes debilitating venom. While not deadly to humans, the venom can cause intense pain and swelling.

We have chosen the most poisonous snake, the inland taipan, the most lethal spider, the funnel web, and the much under-recognised platypus, whose bashful personality hides a set of poisonous spurs ...

and venom arose in snakes some 65 million years ago, followed by monotremes (such as the platypus) 46 million years ago. “If we find complex life on other planets,” says Bryan Fry, head of the ...

Found in Australia and New Guinea, the platypus and echidna are called monotremes, and they are unique for being the only mammals that lay eggs. The amphibious platypus has a bill and webbed feet ...

No, it does not, and here's why: It turns out that venomous snakes and the platypus have different duplications of the b-defensin genes. So, while co-opting these genes seems to be a common ...

Typically, mammals give birth to live young. However, three unusual species defy this norm. Scientists are intrigued by the ...

The platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) has a puzzling array of features. Not only does it have that iconic duck bill, it lays eggs like a bird or reptile but feeds milk to its young like a mammal.

but it can be dangerous for both the displaced animal and the person involved if the platypus is male as they have venomous spurs,” police said. “If you are lucky enough to see a platypus in ...