

Species of Mammals of the Pacific Area 



Egg-laying Mammals: Duckbills, Spiny 

 Anteaters. Order IMonotremata 



Only in Australia and New Guinea are there mammals that 

 lay eggs and suckle their young. They are of two main types: 

 the velvet-coated Duckbill or Platypus, and the Spiny Ant- 

 eaters or Echidnas. 



The Duckbill. Family Ornithorhynchid^ 

 The Duckbill or Platypus (Ornithorhynchus) , though hu- 

 morously described as half bird and half animal, is nevertheless 

 a true mammal. The jaws and front of the face project as a 

 rubbery or horny duck-like "bill" and are covered with hairless, 

 tough skin. The bill is made to appear more duck-like by the 

 lack of teeth. However, in unborn duckbills teeth are present. 

 These are lost during development. 



The fur of the duckbill is close and velvety, and colored dark 

 grayish brown. It shows the sheen commonly observed on other 

 aquatic animals such as otters and Australian water rats. The 

 tail is relatively short and stumpy. The feet are webbed for 

 swimming and the hind foot of the male bears a horny spur, at 

 the base of which is a gland containing a poisonous secretion. 

 Very young females also have spurs which, however, become 

 atrophied soon after the body length exceeds nine inches. Males 

 are much larger than females. The total length of males is 

 twenty-four inches, and of females eighteen inches, the tail of 

 each being about one-fourth of the total length. 



The food consists of snails, aquatic larvae, worms and cray- 



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