Test your knowledge by printing our platypus quiz
The quiz can also be found on-line at the Question and answer database,
designed by Shane Watts.

1) Where are platypus found?
*Australia
*Argentina
*Europe
*Papua New Guinea

2) What does the name Platypus anatinus mean?

*Underwater Creature
*Australian Mammal
*Flat-footed, duck-like
*Water mole

3) Why is the platypus now called ornithorhynchus anatinus?

*There is a beetle called ‘Platypus’.
*The original name wasn’t long enough.
*It was insulted by the name.
*Scientists discovered it was from a different family of animals.

4) What is the weight of an average male platypus?

*5 kilos - 10 kilos
*2 pounds- 2.5 pounds
*1000 - 2400grams
*100 - 200 grams

5) How long is an average female?

*50 cm
*44 cm
*12 cm
*44 inches

6) Does the platypus lay eggs?

*Yes
*No

7) How long before a platypus needs to breathe?

* 14mins 30 secs
*14 mins
*1 hour
* 2 mins

8) What do the platypus fur layers consist of?

*A woolly undercoat and a woolly top coat
* 2 layers of shiny guard fur
* A layer of guard fur with a woolly top coat.
* A woolly undercoat with longer shiny guard fur.

9) How many hairs are in each square millimetre of fur?

*20 hairs
*100 hairs
*5 hairs
*800 hairs

10) Does the platypus...

*Eat under the water
*Carry their food in their tail to the surface to eat it.
*Store it in a cheek pouch and eat it on land?
*Not eat at all?

11) How much food does a platypus eat each day?

*2 yabbies
*10% of their body weight.
* 5 Frogs
*15 -30% of their body weight

12) What is the average age a platypus lives to?

*12 years
*3 years
*10 years
*13 years

13) Where is the venom in a platypus stored?

*In its spur
*In its tail
*In its bill
*In its foot

14) How does a platypus produce young?

*The stork brings them
*lay eggs
*live young are born
*They find them

15) What do you call a group of platypus eggs?

*Clutch
*Batch
*Nest
*Collection

16) How many eggs are in a clutch?

*20-21
*1-3
*5-6
*1

17) How does the platypus find its food?

* Smell
* Electroreceptors
* Sight
* Touch

18) How much does the average female platypus weigh?

*900kg
*900g
*500g
*2,000,000 µg

19) How long is the average male platypus?

*1m
*30cm
*500mm
*Depends on whether he’s standing up straight

20) What does the platypus use its front legs for in the water?

*To propel itself
*To steer
*To fight predators
*To tickle the yabbies

21) How do researchers know the health of a platypus?

*By taking its temperature
*By feeling its bill
*By observing its faeces
*By squeezing its tail

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1. Australia
2. Flat-footed, duck-like
3. There is a beetle called ‘Platypus’.
4. 1000 - 2400grams
5. 44 cm
6. Yes
7. 14mins 30 secs
8. A woolly undercoat with longer shiny guard fur.
9. 800 hairs
10. Store it in a cheek pouch and eat it on land
11. 15 -30% of their body weight
12. 13 years
13. In its spur
14. lay eggs
15. Clutch
16. 1-3
17. Electroreceptors
18. 900g
19. 500mm
20. To propel itself
21. By squeezing its tail