Platypus

ADULT

So this morning the kids decided to ask if a platypus was a mammal or not.  I was thinking not since they laid eggs....so we googled and came across that they are mammals even though they lay eggs. We actually found some very interesting information:

~Why the duck-billed platypus is so unique~

~It only lives in Australia~It is the only mammal on the planet that lays eggs, has webbed-feet, and has no external ears!
~Their ears close when diving or swimming under water.
~They're sounds have been compared to a puppy growling.
~The small, beady eyes are very sensitive to movement.
~The platypus has four legs which extend horizontally from its body.  This arrangement makes it walk on land with a shuffle like a lizard.  The front feet have large webs of skin which help to propel the platypus through the water.  The platypus swims with alternate strokes of the front legs. 

Mom with her babies:0)

~The paddle-like tail of the platypus is broad and flat.
~The platypus is about the size of a household cat.  The male platypus's body is about 50 - 60 

centimeters long and the female is about 40 - 50 centimeters long.
~The platypus's sensitive, pliable bill is a blue-gray, blackish color with the two nostril holes near the tip. 

young baby