Platypuses do most of their food-seeking at the bottom of bodies of water, which makes them what is called a “bottom-feeder” To achieve extended time in the water, platypuses are capable of being underwater for up to 2 minutes, which gives them plenty of time to search. Platypuses live primarily in water which makes them excellent swimmers, though their diet is completely like traditional aquatic hunting like others that reside in the same type of habitat. What makes platypus an excellent predator? This is the main source for baby platypuses diets until they learn to use their duck bills to hunt on their own. The milking teeth serve no purpose, as platypuses do not have nipples for traditional nursing, but rather seep milk out of their glands onto their skin. While adult platypuses do not have teeth to chew anything, baby platypuses do “milking teeth” that shed when they leave the burrows. Each dive usually last for around 30 to 40 seconds but sometimes can last longer than that.īaby platypuses are nursed like other mammals, however, their diet is also unique to the animal kingdom. Platypuses dive underwater to catch their prey and they eat it after reaching the surface. They don’t have a stomach the esophagus leads the food straight to the intestine. It is due to the fact that platypuses do not have teeth and have to ingest gravel and sand to grind up the food in their cheek pouches (which are in the sides of their mouths). The electrolocation technique is useful for them in figuring out whether the prey is poisonous or not.Īfter they, find the prey they catch it with their bill and crush it using the grit they consume together with the prey. Platypuses search for all kinds of foods including larvae, crayfish shrimps, etc using this technique of electrolocation. The receptor then sends these signals to their brain which then analyzes the signals and decide whether it is an animate or inanimate object. Instead, they have electroreceptors in their bills through which they gather electric signals from their prey. Platypuses do not use their sense of smell or sight while hunting in the water. Platypuses are hunting expert and have special abilities to hunt underwater such as electrolocation technique.

What makes platypus an excellent predator?.

These mammals come off a bit strange because they look like a hybrid of three other well-known mammals: the duck, the otter, and the beaver. The platypus is an extraordinary mammal from Australia. Even some amphibians, like frogs and tadpoles, form part of their extensive diet. Their diet consists mainly of worms, insect larvae, freshwater shrimp, river crabs, clams, little fish, mollusks, freshwater crustaceans, crayfish, shellfish, snails, mussels, trout eggs, and squids.

So, what does a platypus eat? Platypuses are carnivores that hunt their prey underwater and usually at night. I was too therefore, I decided to do a little research by myself and here is what I found.

Many people are often curious to know about the eating habits of platypuses. This is why they attract people from all over the world to Australia just to see them. For a long time, platypuses have surprised scientists with their unusual body structure and behaviors. With a duck’s bill and a beaver’s flat tail, the platypus is on the list of some really weird creatures.

Fat platypus