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Ornithorhynchoidea is a superfamily of mammals containing the only living monotremes, the platypus and the echidnas, as well as their closest fossil relatives, to the exclusion of more primitive fossil monotremes of uncertain affinity.
Megalibgwilia is a genus of echidna known only from Australian fossils that incorporates the oldest-known echidna species.The genus ranged from the Pliocene until the late Pleistocene, becoming extinct about 50,000 years ago. [2]
The long-beaked echidna's limb posture is sprawled, similar to extant reptiles like lizards and crocodilians. Although the stances between the animal groups are similar, the way the limbs move are very different between the clades. The echidna swings its limbs at a 45 degree angle while a lizard's is more horizontal.
It has been theorized that the loss of teeth in the platypus was a geologically recent event, occurring only in the Pleistocene (after over 95 million years of tooth presence in the ornithorhynchid lineage) after the migration of the rakali (Hydromys chrysogaster), a large semiaquatic rodent, to Australia. Competition between the rakali and ...
The short-beaked echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus), also called the short-nosed echidna, is one of four living species of echidna, and the only member of the genus Tachyglossus. It is covered in fur and spines and has a distinctive snout and a specialised tongue , which it uses to catch its insect prey at a great speed.
The echidna spurs are vestigial and have no known function, while the platypus spurs contain venom. [42] Molecular data show that the main component of platypus venom emerged before the divergence of platypus and echidnas, suggesting that the most recent common ancestor of these taxa was also possibly a venomous monotreme.
The platypus is the sole living representative or monotypic taxon of its family Ornithorhynchidae and genus Ornithorhynchus, 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, mammals that lay eggs instead of giving birth to live young.
The male echidna's penis is 7 centimetres (2.8 in) long when erect, and its shaft is covered with penile spines. [29] These may be used to induce ovulation in the female. [30] It is a challenge to study the echidna in its natural habitat, and they show no interest in mating while in captivity. Prior to 2007, no one had ever seen an echidna ...