Howdy hi there, my sunshiney scholars! Thank you for joining me for another chapter of An Assemblage of Grandiose and Bombastic Grandiloquents. On today’s episode we’re heading down under to Australia, but forget your koalas and kangaroos; today’s word is: platypus.

The platypus, sometimes referred to as the duck-billed platypus is a semiaquatic egg-laying mammal native to easter Australia, including the island Tasmania. The platypus is the sole living representative of its family and genus, though a number of related species appear in the fossil record.

Platypus - The platypus, sometimes referred to as the duck-billed platypus, is a semiaquatic egg-laying mammal endemic to eastern Australia, including Tasmania. The platypus is the sole living representative of its family and genus, though a number of related species appear in the fossil record. Together with the four species of echidna, it is one of the five extant species of monotremes - the only mammals that lay eggs instead of giving birth to live young. It is also one of the few species of venomous mammals, as the male platypus has a spur on the hind foot that delivers a venom capable of causing severe pain to humans. A truly unique creature, no?

The word ‘platypus’ comes from the Ancient Greek ‘platúpous’ meaning ‘flat-footed’. This Greek evolved into the New Latin word ‘Platypus’, which was originally a genus name already in use for a type of beetle, and subsequently adopted for the Australian mammal. ‘Platypussary’ is the word for a place where playtpuses (yes, not platypi) are nurtured.

The platypuses scientific name is ‘Ornithorhynchus anatinus’, which is derived from the Greek ‘ornithorhynkhos’, literally meaning ‘bird snout’ in Greek, and ‘anatinus’, which means ‘duck-like’ in Latin. There are also casually referred to as the duckbill, duckmole, and watermole.

Isn’t language wonderful?

Written by Taylor Davidson, Read by Zane C Weber

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