Friday, June 20, 2008

Platypuses!


Since my blog is named after the platypus, I've decided to tell you a little bit about platypuses.

I first learned about platypuses in a Ranger Rick magazine. (Ranger Rick is a really cool nature magazine for kids.) There was an article about platypuses in it, and I guess I just fell in love with platypuses.

Platypuses are house cat-sized mammals that live in lakes, ponds, and rivers in Australia. They are brown (no, not purple!) and their bill is black. Platypuses are also one of the two mammals in the world that lay eggs.

In mating season, (late winter through early spring) the males mate with females and then leave. This is the only time adult platypuses are social. The female digs a burrow in the ground and then lays 2- 4 thumbnail- sized eggs. After a 2-week incubation, the baby platypuses (called puggles) hatch. They stay with their mother until they can hunt on their own.

Platypuses eat small fish, crayfish, and insect larvae in the water. Since they close their eyes when underwater, they depend on their sensitive bill.

Well, that's my little presentation on platypuses. Please help platypuses by donating to platypus conservations. I think platypuses are really cool and I hope you do, too.

If you would like to help the platypus, you can sponsor a platypus through the Australian Platypus Conservancy.

(I got these photos from the Australian Platypus Conservancy.)

1 comment:

Ellie said...

Thanks for the info about the platypus. I never knew much about them. Also the web site in Australia which you supplied was very interesting, and I was glad to learn what the plural of "platypus" is.
Grammy