ECHIDNA AND DUCK-BILLED PLATYPUS 319 



with long strong claws. The tongue is long and flexible, and 

 there are no teeth. Ants are its favourite food, and they are 

 captured in the same way as by the great ant-eaters belonging 

 to the Edentata, the long slimy tongue being poked into the ants' 

 nest. When the ants have collected on the sticky tongue it is 

 taken into the mouth, and they are swallowed. The absence of 

 teeth is made up for by the presence of horny spines on the palate 

 and tongue, and these crush and divert the food into the throat: 

 The long muzzle and slender lower jaw give the skull a very bird- 

 like appearance, which is enhanced by the ball-shaped brain-case. 

 The shoulder and the bones of the upper part of the chest resemble 

 those of the duck-billed platypus. The animal, which inhabits 

 Australia, appears to be stupid and apathetic. 



During the breeding season the female Echidna develops a 

 rudimentary pouch formed by an infolding of the skin of the 

 abdomen. The external orifices of the milk glands are little 

 depressions surrounded by hair, and the baby Echidna helps itself 

 to nourishment by placing its snout in these small depressions. 

 Another Echidna, which has three instead of five nails on the fore 

 and hind limbs, is found in New Guinea. 



The Duck-billed Platypus is also a native of Australia, and 

 is of all animals that suckle their young the most bird-like ; indeed, 

 so extraordinary is its appearance, that the first specimens brought 

 to Europe were thought to be clever fakes, like the so-called '" mer- 

 maids," which consist of the head and body of a monkey sewn on 

 to the tail of a large fish. The Platypus has a rather flat body 

 of about eighteen inches in length, and the head and snout greatly 

 resemble those of a duck, while the tail is short, flat, and resembles 

 somewhat that of a small beaver. The feet are webbed and flat, 

 and the greater part of the animal is covered with a dense soft 

 fur of dusky brown colour, darker on the upper part of the body. 

 The animal forms extensive burrows on the banks of the rivers, 

 and leads a thoroughly aquatic life, swimming with ease and grace, 

 and feeding upon molluscs and water plants. The curious beak 

 is flat and broadest in front, where it is rounded. It is hard, and 

 covered with soft, sensitive, and naked skin, and on either side 

 this skin overlaps to form a kind of flexible cheek. When this 

 skin comes to the head it forms a wide fold, which flaps over the 

 front of the head and throat, forming a protection to the face and 



