Ornithorhynchus anatinus

Ornithorhynchus anatinus
Name	Platypus
Status	NT
Status system	IUCN3.1
Genus	Ornithorhynchus
Species	anatinus
Authority	Shaw, 1799

Ornithorhynchus anatinus

The platypus is a semiaquatic mammal native to eastern Australia and Tasmania, notable for its mosaic of traits associated with Carl Linnaeus, Charles Darwin, Alexander von Humboldt, Joseph Banks and early naturalists. Early descriptions reached institutions such as the Royal Society, the British Museum and the Linnean Society of London and influenced debates at the Zoological Society of London, Natural History Museum, London and universities including University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, Harvard University and University of Melbourne.

Taxonomy and Evolution

Ornithorhynchus anatinus occupies a basal position among Mammalia recognized by authorities like the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature and studied by researchers at the Smithsonian Institution, Australian Museum, Monash University, University of Sydney and Australian National University. Fossil relatives from sites associated with the Mesozoic and Cenozoic eras were described in journals read at the Royal Society of London, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. Molecular phylogenetics using methods from teams at the Max Planck Society, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory and Wellcome Sanger Institute have compared platypus genomes with those of Theria, Monotremata, Marsupialia and Eutheria, informing debates at the Royal Society and conferences sponsored by the European Molecular Biology Laboratory and American Society of Mammalogists.

Description and Anatomy

Anatomical descriptions in collections at the Natural History Museum, London, Australian Museum and Smithsonian Institution detail a bill, webbed feet and a tail that elicited discussion among scholars at the Royal Society, Linnean Society of London, University of Cambridge and University of Oxford. The skull and pectoral girdle have been compared in comparative anatomy courses at Harvard University, Yale University, Stanford University and Columbia University against specimens from the American Museum of Natural History and the Field Museum of Natural History. Venom delivery in males has been characterized by teams affiliated with University of Melbourne, Monash University, University of Sydney and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute; electroreception has been investigated in laboratories at the Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, University College London, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Karolinska Institutet.

Distribution and Habitat

Wild populations occur in river systems documented by field surveys conducted by the Australian Wildlife Conservancy, Parks Australia, Tasmanian Government and state agencies such as the New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service, Parks Victoria and the Queensland Government. Historical records appear in expedition logs associated with James Cook, Matthew Flinders and collectors like John Gould whose specimens entered collections at the British Museum (Natural History), Natural History Museum, London and Australian Museum. Habitat studies published by researchers at University of Tasmania, Deakin University, Griffith University and University of Queensland assess riparian corridors, wetlands and reservoirs managed by entities including the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation and the Australian Bureau of Meteorology.

Behavior and Ecology

Foraging and sensory ecology have been tested in experiments organized by teams at University of Sydney, University of Melbourne, Monash University and the Max Planck Society, often in collaboration with conservation groups such as the World Wildlife Fund and the IUCN. Social and territorial behaviors have been reported in field studies associated with the Australian Research Council, CSIRO and the Tasmanian Land Conservancy, presented at meetings of the Society for Conservation Biology and the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Trophic interactions and invertebrate prey associations have been included in publications from the Journal of Animal Ecology, Ecology Letters and studies by researchers at the University of Western Australia and Flinders University.

Reproduction and Life Cycle

Reproductive biology and egg-laying were milestones for naturalists reporting to the Royal Society of London, Linnean Society of London and observers such as John Gould; modern reproductive endocrinology has been studied by teams at University of Melbourne, Monash University, University of Sydney and institutions like the Wellcome Trust. Developmental stages appear in comparative embryology texts used at University College London, University of Cambridge and Harvard Medical School; lactation and milk composition were investigated by researchers at the CSIRO, Australian National University and the University of Adelaide.

Conservation and Threats

Conservation assessments by the IUCN and Australian state agencies outline threats including habitat modification, water regulation by organizations like the Murray–Darling Basin Authority, pollutants monitored by the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority and climate impacts examined by the Bureau of Meteorology and Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation. Recovery planning has involved collaborations among the Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, Tasmanian Government, NGOs such as the World Wide Fund for Nature and research partners at the University of Tasmania, Deakin University and the Australian Wildlife Conservancy.

Category:Monotremes