X7^ ox THE FEMORAL GLAXD OF OUX ITIWRHYXCHUS, 



porpoise he represented with a pair of hind hnibs, the single duct 

 of the male mamma opening in the middle line far back on the 

 venti'al surface would then be represented by a pair of ducts 

 going with the limbs, and that is exactl}^ the condition in the male 

 duckbill.'' 



In 1876 Spicer communicated an account* of injurious effects 

 following wounds made by a Platypus with its spurs in the hand 

 f)f a friend of his. This account corroborates in every particular 

 those previously mentioned in this paper. Mr. Spicer points out 

 the difference between the effects in the above-mentioned case and 

 the usual effects of lacerated wounds, and considers that the small, 

 non-lacerated wound, the rapidity with which the s^nnptoms 

 follow, and their intensity indicate more than can be accounted 

 for by a mere wound. He instances the relationship of Saurians 

 and Ophidians to Monotremes as indicating the possible family 

 right of the latter to the possession of a poison apparatus ; Ijut 

 i-emarks that its existence in the male alone is unusual, since in 

 cases where such is found in one sex only — as in some insects — 

 it is usually the female which exhibits it. He refers to the 

 seasonal variation of snake venom, and states that " its virulence 

 depends largely on the circumstances under which it is received." 

 He quotes the opinions of Bennett and Owen with regard to the 

 sexual nature of the gland, and considers it possible that during 

 the pairing season (the time of the year when the aboA-e-mentioned 

 case occurred) the secretion " may have some peculiarly' acrid or 

 irritant property, and when injected into the human body maj- 

 produce similar symptoms to those of a true poison." He also 

 (lut)tes Baden Powell ("New Homes for the Old Country"), who 

 thinks that when no harm results from Platypus wounds, it is 

 perhaps because the poison sac is empty at the time, or that the 

 animal does not use the spur when on land (out of its proper 

 element). Baden Powell further suggests that the spur and 

 secretion may be used for toilet purposes, the animal being known 



' On the Effects of Wounds inflicted by the Spurs of the Platypus 

 Papers and Proc. Roy. Soc. Tasmania, 1876, p. 162. 



