24 
MONOTREMATA. 
Genus ORNITHORHYNCHUS. Blumenbach. 
Platypus, Shaw, Naturalists’ Miscellany, vol. x. Plates 385 and 38C. 
Dated June, 1799. 
Ornithorhynchus , BlumenbaciIj Voigt’s Magaz. ii. 1800. 
Der'mipus, Wiedemann, Archiv. fiir Zoologie, Sec . i. 1800 1 . 
Body depressed, nearly oval, and clothed with a dense fur; 
head with the facial portion elongated, and forming a broad and 
depressed beak-like snout, covered by naked skin, which is pro¬ 
duced iuto a lappet-like fold at the base of the snout: eye small: 
upper and under jaws furnished on each side, and towards the 
front, with a long narrow horny appendage; and towards the 
hinder, with a broad, nearly ovate, crushing tooth of the same 
horny substance: tongue short, and provided in parts with horny 
papillae: legs short; the feet fitted for swimming; each foot 
with five well-developed toes, between which a membrane is 
extended—in the fore foot the membrane is produced consi¬ 
derably beyond the toes; claws of the fore foot large, solid, and 
depressed, and fitted for burrowing : tail rather short, broad, and 
depressed: stomach with the cardiac and pyloric orifices closely 
approximated; ccecum small. The male sex provided with a 
spur to hind foot. 
1 The name Platypus of Shaw, being the first published, would be here 
adopted, bnt that name had been previously applied to a genus of Inrectj, 
The name Ornithorhynchus , which is universally adopted, has reference to 
the bird-like snout of the animal; being from the Greek words vpvis, a bird; 
and fivyyos, a snout. The other two generic names were suggested by the 
peculiarities of the foot: Platypus is from ttAoti/j, broad; and vovr, tire foot; 
and Dermipus is from fitppa, skin; and 7rour—in allusion to the feet being 
webbed. 
