Imagine stumbling upon a creature that looks like a mash-up of a duck, a beaver, and an otter—with a dash of poison thrown in ...

male platypuses are surprisingly venomous! The platypus is found only in Australia, where it spends most of its life swimming ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

One expert told the BBC the male platypuses, which have venomous spurs, can become territorial ahead of the breeding season. The BBC spoke to people in Sydney about Australia's housing crisis and ...

And for those wondering, yes, male platypus do possess a spur on their feet containing poison, but that doesn't factor into this measurement since the tail extends farther down regardless.

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.