At the end of the tunnel, she builds a nest out of reeds for her eggs. She blocks the tunnel with earth at several places. When a female platypus is pregnant, the female makes much larger holes, up to 20 m (66 ft) long. It makes these holes in the river bank a little above the water. These holes are between 3 m (10 ft) and 8 m (26 ft) long. When on land, the platypus lives in burrows on the river banks. These are adaptations to life in rivers where the water is opaque with sediment. The platypus can also hunt without using its eyes. It keeps its eyes shut when swimming, using only its other senses, such as hearing, touch and changes in the electrical field. The platypus can sense electricity from other animals. Its nose can sense many things that other noses cannot.
It digs these animals out of the bottom of the river with its beak, or catches them while swimming. It eats worms, insect larvae, shrimps and yabbies, which are a kind of freshwater crayfish. The tail and back feet help it to turn left or right, but does not make it faster. When it swims, it pushes itself along by moving the front two feet. It is a very good swimmer and spends much of its time in the water. The platypus sleeps during the day, and moves mostly at night. The amount of poison increases during the breeding season. It will not kill humans, but the poison has been known to kill small animals, such as dogs, and cause pain lasting as long as four months. The male platypus has a sharp spine on his two back ankles called spurs which contain a venom. Males are about one-third (1/3) larger than females. Its tail can be from 10 cm (4 in) to 15 cm (6 in) long. Its body can be from 30 cm (12 in) to 40 cm (16 in) long. Adults can be less than 1 kg (2 lb) or up to 3 kg (7 lb). The larger platypus live in Tasmania while the smaller ones live in Queensland. The platypus is sometimes called "duck billed platypus" because of this nose. When the platypus moves on land, it walks on its knuckles so the webs on its feet will not get in the way. Unlike a beaver, it has no feet (no toes), which are good for swimming. The platypus looks similar to a beaver with a brown, furry body and wide, flat tail. The later ( derived) mammals have the system where the rear has two openings. This is a primitive ( basal) feature of tetrapods, which monotremes, birds and reptiles have today. Through this opening faeces and urine are voided (put out), and sexual activity takes place. These mammals are called monotremes because they have a common rear opening, the cloaca. The platypus was first described in detail in the early 19th century, but it took a while before biologists in England believed what they were reading.
The other is the Echidna, which has four species. It is one of only two families of mammals which lay eggs. The platypus lives in rivers and river banks. The plural of platypus is just 'platypus'. It lives in eastern Australia, including Tasmania. It is one of only two monotremes that survive today. The duck-billed platypus ( Ornithorhynchus anatinus) is a small mammal.
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