Platypus fact of the day: the non-furry parts

The platypus, being a creature that spends much of it's time in water, has adorable webbed feet, like many animals. He uses is front feet to paddle, alternating strokes like you would with a kayak paddle. The rear feet and tail steer. (Guess how many mammals swim this way? Did you guess "only one?" If so, you're correct!) He's kind of like a duck in that sense.

The bill of the platypus, however, is very different. For one, it's not a beak. A bird opens its beak and there's its mouth in the middle. A platypus's bill is not divided equally: it's mouth is on the bottom. This is because the bill proper is a sensory organ. Yes, Mr. Platy's nostrils are located on the top front of the bill, but he doesn't hunt using scent. No, he hunts underwater, with his eyes and nose and ears all tightly sealed up, and he ueses electroreception to find his food.

You know the three general types of animals that use electroreception underwater? Sharks, rays, and of course our baffling friend the platypus.