Close-up of a platypus swimming in the water A platypus wandering by a roadside in Australia stabbed a woman with its venomous spurs when she attempted to lift it from a gutter. Jenny Forward was ...

To make things even stranger, grown males have a secret weapon on their back legs: a sharp spur that delivers venom powerful ...

Tom has a Master's degree in Journalism. His editorial work covers anything from archaeology and the environment to technology and culture. Tom has a Master's degree in Journalism. His editorial work ...

Only male platypuses have venomous spurs. The amount of venom a male platypus produces also increases during breeding season, so scientists believe it is used as a weapon against rival males.

The platypus already looks like an animal assembled from spare parts, with a duck-like bill, webbed feet, and a beaver-style tail. On top of that, adult males carry a hidden weapon on each hind leg: a ...

The platypus produces a powerful venom during breeding season, which is used in competition among males for females. "We've discovered conflicting functions of GLP-1 in the platypus: in the gut as a ...

Abandon any notion that the duck-billed platypus is a soft and cuddly creature -- maybe like Perry the Platypus in the Phineas and Ferb cartoon. This platypus, renowned as one of the few mammals that ...

With diabetes currently sweeping the United States, designing more effective treatments is paramount. New research finds a rather surprising source of a potential new drug: platypus venom. As we dig ...

It’s a semi-aquatic exotic with some remarkable traits! This week, we’re exploring the strange but true story of the platypus. * Platypuses use “electrolocation” while feeding, sending out impulses ...

When British zoologist George Shaw first encountered a platypus specimen in 1799, he was so befuddled that he checked for stitches, thinking someone might be trying to trick him with a Frankencreature ...