platypus

Everyday

A platypus is an unusual animal from eastern Australia with a duck-like bill, webbed feet, thick fur and a flat tail like a beaver's, which lays eggs. tree →

In the lessons

In science lessons the platypus is a mammal that lays eggs (a monotreme), like the echidna; the mother feeds the babies with milk. It hunts underwater with its eyes closed, finding food by sensing electricity with its bill. The male has a poisonous spur on its back legs. In geography it lives in rivers in eastern Australia and Tasmania. Phrases: duck-billed platypus.

Examples

• The platypus lives in Australia. tree →
• A platypus is a mammal that lays eggs. tree →
• The platypus has a bill like a duck. tree →
• Platypuses hunt underwater with their eyes shut. tree →
• The male platypus has a poisonous spur. tree →
• When scientists first saw a platypus, they thought it was a joke. tree →

Note

Plural: platypuses (not «platypi»). Trap for sorting tasks: it lays eggs but is still a mammal, because it has fur and feeds its young on milk. Not a bird, even with a bill.