The platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus), sometimes referred to as the duck-billed platypus, is a semiaquatic, egg-laying mammal endemic to eastern Australia, including Tasmania. The platypus is the sole living representative or monotypic taxon of its family (Ornithorhynchidae)[4] and genus (Ornithorhynchus), though a number of related species appear in the fossil record.
Together with the four species of echidna, it is one of the five extant species of monotremes. It is one of the few mammals that lay eggs instead of giving birth to live young. Like other monotremes, it senses prey through electrolocation. It is one of the few species of venomous mammals, as the male platypus has a spur on the hind foot that delivers a venom, capable of causing severe pain to humans. The unusual appearance of this egg-laying, duck-billed, beaver-tailed, otter-footed mammal baffled European naturalists when they first encountered it, and the first scientists to examine a preserved platypus body (in 1799) judged it a fake, made of several animals sewn together.
The unique features of the platypus make it an important subject in the study of evolutionary biology, and a recognisable and iconic symbol of Australia. It is culturally significant to several Aboriginal peoples of Australia, who also used to hunt the animal for food. It has appeared as a mascot at national events and features on the reverse of the Australian twenty-cent coin, and the platypus is the animal emblem of the state of New South Wales. Until the early 20th century, humans hunted the platypus for its fur, but it is now protected throughout its range. Although captive-breedingprograms have had only limited success, and the platypus is vulnerable to the effects of pollution, it is not under any immediate threat.
As of 2020[update], the platypus is a legally protected species in all states where it occurs. It is listed as an endangered species in South Australia and Victoria and has been recommended for listing in New South Wales.[5] The species is classified as a near-threatened species by the IUCN, but a November 2020 report has recommended that it is upgraded to threatened species under the federal EPBC Act, due to habitat destruction and declining numbers in all states.
When the platypus was first encountered by Europeans in 1798, a pelt and sketch were sent back to Great Britain by Captain John Hunter, the second Governor of New South Wales.[6] British scientists' initial hunch was that the attributes were a hoax.[7] George Shaw, who produced the first description of the animal in the Naturalist's Miscellany in 1799, stated it was impossible not to entertain doubts as to its genuine nature,[8] and Robert Knox believed it might have been produced by some Asian taxidermist.[7] It was thought that somebody had sewn a duck's beak onto the body of a beaver-like animal. Shaw even took a pair of scissors to the dried skin to check for stitches.[9][8]
The common name "platypus" literally means 'flat-foot', deriving from the Greek word platúpous (πλατύπους),[10] from platús (πλατύς 'broad, wide, flat')[11] and poús (πούς 'foot').[12][13] Shaw initially assigned the species the Linnaean name Platypus anatinus when he described it,[14] but the genus term was quickly discovered to already be in use as the name of the wood-boring ambrosia beetle genus Platypus.[15] It was independently described as Ornithorhynchus paradoxus by Johann Blumenbach in 1800 (from a specimen given to him by Sir Joseph Banks)[16] and following the rules of priority of nomenclature, it was later officially recognised as Ornithorhynchus anatinus.[15]