Mammals are animals which are warm blooded, have fur and feed their young on milk. When you travel to places in the world where the animal species have been isolated for millions of years, some strange mammals appear!

A mammal which lays eggs? No way!

There was an easy way to separate the birds, reptiles fish and other beasts from those with fur. The feathered and scaled animals all lay eggs. The warm blooded furred ones all produced live young. Easy.

In 1799, a small animal was sent back to England. It had a bill like a duck, fur like a mammal and - or so it was claimed - it lay eggs! It was not believed. Scientists were baffled and concluded this bizarre creature was probably a fake. It was only when more examples arrived from New Holland, as Australia was known then, that the issue was resolved.

The platypus was first classified by London's Natural History Museum's acclaimed naturalist Dr. George Shaw. It was he who was so sceptical about its validity. He said: " It is impossible not to entertain some doubts as to the genuine nature of the animal"

A drawing of a platypus by Dr George Shaw's, published in 1801.
Some people actually suggested that the amazing little furred creature with a duck's bill and webbed feet might be a clever fake. Chinese artisans had produced mermaids by attaching fish-tails to the mummified bodies of monkeys. These monstrosities were then sold at high prices to gullible sailors returning from voyages to the East Indies. So when the platypus appeared in London, it was thought that somebody had stitched a duck's beak onto the body of a beaver-like animal. Perhaps the platypus was another Chinese fraud. Shaw reportedly checked very closely for the seams.

What name do you give something so weird?

When the Platypus was first discovered by Europeans in the late 1700s, a pelt was sent back to the United Kingdom for classification. The common name is Latin platypus , derived from the Greek words "platys" meaning flat and "pous" for foot.

Dr Shaw had described the wonder animal, with a quaint illustration, in the Naturalist's Miscellany. He called it Platypus anatinus. It was discovered that the Genus name 'Platypus" was already assigned to the wood-boring Ambrosia beetle, hence they had to find another name for the Platypus.

It was called Ornithorhynchus anatinus. The scientific name Ornithorhynchus is derived from "ornithorhynkhos", which literally means "bird snout" in Greek , and anatinus means "duck-like". But people still called it a Platypus - and still do today.
The platypus
(with translucent eyelids closed for swimming)
The Type Specimen

Where is that very first specimen to be caught and shipped to London to be 'described'? A new species needs to be formally described in the scientific literature to be accepted as a species and then classified. In the early days of the young Australian colony, the powers that be in London would not permit something so important to be done way out in the colonies. So where is that special little platypus and why is it so important?

The platypus is still intact in the Natural History Museum, London, and in surprisingly good condition. It is too valuable to be put on public display, so it is kept in a sealed box in a cupboard on the third floor of the museum's north-west block, known as "The Mammal Tower".

Because this was the individual used for the first scientific description of a platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus), it is what is called a "holotype" or "type specimen" for the platypus. The type specimen is used as the standard to compare with any new specimen to determine if they are the same species, a new species or sub-species.

Despite its strange appearance, the platypus is a superbly designed underwater hunter. It catches crayfish and worms on the bottoms of muddy rivers where sight is nearly impossible. It is able to search for food in darkness using its specially adapted, beak-like snout, which is filled with sensors and can detect any movement in the murky water. It is one of the few venomous mammals. The male platypus has a spur on his hind foot with a poison capable of causing severe pain to humans.

Egg Laying mammals are Monotremes

Some naturalists remained unconvinced that such a things as an egg-laying mammal really existed at all. Many platypuses were killed in exploring their physiology. Eventually the evidence was produced and it was accepted that there were indeed mammals which laid eggs. They were classified as a new Order: monotremata - the monotremes.

The Platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) is one of the two monotremes in the world. The other is the echidna - a spiny backed ant eater. The living species are:

ORDER MONOTREMATA

Family Ornithorhynchidae: platypus
     Genus Ornithorhyncus
             Platypus, Ornithorhyncus anatinus  (Australia)

Family Tachyglossidae: echidnas
      Genus Tachyglossus
            Short-beaked Echidna, Tachyglossus aculeatus   (Australia and New Guinea)
      Genus Zaglossus
           Western Long-beaked Echidna, Zaglossus brujinii (New Guinea)
           Sir David's Long-beaked Echidna, Zaglossus attenboroughi (New Guinea)
           Eastern Long-beaked Echidna, Zaglossus bartoni (New Guinea)

 

The short-beaked echidna

(Tachyglossus aculeatus)

Eastern Grey Kangaroo
(Macropus giganteus)

The Marsupials

Mammals can have pouches - they are called marsupials. Marsupials come in a  variety of sizes from the largest kangaroos to very small marsupial mice. The young are born as a foetus and crawl from the vagina up into the pouch. That's a long crawl for a tiny foetus.

Early birth places the tiny new-born marsupial at greater risk, but significantly reduces the risks associated with pregnancy, as there is no need to carry a large foetus to full-term in bad seasons. With Australia's droughts, this is a huge evolutionary advantage.

There are about 334 species of marsupials, over 200 of them native to Australia and nearby islands to the north, including New Guinea. There are also many living species in South America and one species, the Virginia Opossum (Didelphis virginiana), which is native to North America.

Two Canis familiaris and one Homo sapiens.

Placentals

The majority of living mammals are placental. These animals produce a temporary organ in the mother's uterus - the placenta - to contain the foetus in a sac of fluid for the term of the pregnancy.

A placental mammal which is very important to you is the Human. It is classified as follows:

* Kingdom: Animalia
* Phylum: Chordata
* Class: Mammalia
* Order: Primates
* Family: Hominidae
* Genus: Homo
* Species: H. sapiens

You are Homo sapiens.

This is an animal you have probably never seen before. Imagine you are a zoologist and you have discovered this tiny creature. No-one seems to be able to identify it. You found it when you went on an expedition in the deserts in the north of Victoria, Australia. It was tiny - only about 8 centimetres (3 inches) in body length.

Your task is to describe this animal as a zoologist finding a new species would do.
Try drawing it, as well as giving a verbal description, labelling the key features which might help you identify it.

The actual species is given in the Teachers' Guide. If you want a real challenge, see if you can identify it completely. The location will give you a starting point.

P.S. The author wishes to gloat! She lives on a bush property with monotremes (echidna), marsupials (including three species of possum, wombat, kangaroos and wallabies) and placentals (humans and dogs). How good is that?