The Platypus: The Weirdest Animal on this Pale Blue Dot

The platypus is one of (or is) the weirdest animals on this planet. With its beaver-like tail, otter-like fur, and duck-like bill, the platypus looks like someone took leftover animal parts and sewed them together to make a hoax.

When the first platypus arrived in England European scientists thought they were looking at a hoax, and we don’t blame them. If someone handed us a platypus with no context, we’d probably assume it was the jackalope of Australia. 

This Monotreme (a special group of mammals that were made just for the platypus and echidnas), is an egg-laying, venomous, lizard-walking,  stomach-less, nipple-less and toothless animal with biofluorescent fur. It also spends twelve hours a day hunting in murky water using electroreception.  We told you it was weird. This bizarre animal's DNA reflects the animal; primitive and unchanged, a strange mix of bird, reptile, and mammalian genes. 

The platypus is an odd in-between mammal, and its genome is a bridge to our own evolutionary past. Listen now to learn more. 

In the Good The Bad The News
Itchy eye in a gardener turns out to be maggot larvae infestation. Because, apparently, that’s a gross thing that can happen. 
Zoos are bringing their birds indoors due to the avian flu that is going around.
And, no, America is not the happiest place on earth, we didn’t even make it to the top 10. 

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