Thread: Task of the Month for July 2014

Unfortunately they have been hunted for their fantastic fur. Completely amazing animals - and so I can quote something from the respective thread in my sig on over into a spoiler:

Spoiler for more platypus :

Originally Posted by StephL

Yeah - platypuses are fantastic - quite endangered - they need extremely clear water for finding all their food.
You can sort of adopt them, pay money for the in captivity breeding program - and then you are allowed to go into a basin and play with the females*, and cuddle and feed away - they really seem to love it!
And these adorable beaks - they are all rubbery!





They are very cool indeed - here a little collection of platypus special-effects:

The first scientists who encountered the odd-looking platypus believed someone had sewn together the body of a beaver with a duck's bill as a joke. The animal appears to be an unlikely mix of the bill and webbed feet of a duck, a beaver-like tail and the fur of an otter.
They are also one of the very few mammals to lay eggs.

Platypuses are amphibians native to freshwater lakes and streams in Eastern Australia and Tasmania. Males average 20 in (50 cm) and females are about 17 in (45 cm) long.
*Males are also very venomous having a spur on their hind foot that, when released, can kill a medium-sized dog and severely incapacitate a human. Hence they miss out on the cuddle fun above - poor guys.

Platypuses are mainly active at night, using their electroreceptors on their sensitive bills to navigate. They also use the bills to turn up soil for food.

These animals can swim well in water and are carnivorous bottom-feeders scooping up small crustaceans, larvae and worms from the floor. A platypus will store the food it scoops up in cheek pouches to consume on land.
They do not have teeth, using bits of gravel to help crush their food.
The platypus stores fat in its tail to help it survive when food is limited.

When on land, their webbing retracts and the claws are more pronounced. They walk awkwardly on their knuckles to protect the webbing.
Platypuses live in burrows they dig near the water's edge. Burrows can be very complex and up to 100 feet long.
A baby platypus is very small and helpless. They stay inside the burrow for nearly four months before they learn to swim.
Platypuses spend nearly 17 hours a day resting in their burrows.
A platypus bill is flexible and feels rubbery to the touch.
Platypuses have two layers of dense, thick fur that helps them stay warm underwater. Until the 1900s, the animals were often hunted for their fur. When swimming, the platypus shuts its eyes and ears. They usually remain about two minutes underwater before they come up for air.

Originally Posted by StephL

We could make a recipe thread - but I actually answer to you for extended platypussic greetings!

Spoiler for platypus:

//glomps on Platypus

Originally Posted by Schmaven

That is an amazing platypus! It looks like its flying through the air, completely dry except for a small wet patch by the bill. Just want to rub its chin!

God it's ACTUALLY one of my life goals to cuddle a platypus. I've loved them since I was in 2nd grade. But there are none here in the USA ; A ;

Originally Posted by StephL

Unfortunately they have been hunted for their fantastic fur. Completely amazing animals - and so I can quote something from the respective thread in my sig on over into a spoiler:

Spoiler for more platypus :

OH MY GOD I THINK I LOVE YOU.
I've never met anyone who knew as much about Platypuses as I do!
Don't forget that they have no teets like most other mammals; they secrete the milk through glands on their bellies, and the babies suck it off the fur, which gets soaked in the milk.
Also WHERE IS THIS MAGICAL PLATYPUS CUDDLES PLACE?
I NEED TO FIND IT.
My life goal. I can seriously die happy if I can say I got to touch a real platypus.
Hell, I'd even willingly get stung by a male if it was the only platypus around.

Originally Posted by KestrelKat

//glomps on Platypus
God it's ACTUALLY one of my life goals to cuddle a platypus. I've loved them since I was in 2nd grade. But there are none here in the USA ; A ;

Platypuses (or the males, rather) have venomous spines on their feet. Apparently, the effects of being kicked are "excruciatingly painful."