Are platypuses poisonous? Male spurs, venom and pain symptoms
Platypuses are venomous rather than poisonous. Adult males deliver venom through rear ankle spurs, causing excruciating pain, swelling, and weeks of symptoms.
Animals Editorial Team
Is a platypus a mammal? Egg laying, milk and venomous spurs
The platypus is an egg-laying mammal in order Monotremata that nurses its young. Learn how it produces milk, lays eggs, and uses venomous spurs.
Do platypuses glow in the dark? UV glow, colours and camouflage
Yes, platypus fur glows bluish green under UV light. It covers how the glow was found, what colours appear and a camouflage proposal.
Do platypuses sweat milk? Mammary patches and nursing
Platypuses do not sweat milk. Females secrete milk from abdominal patches without nipples, nursing their young while protecting them with immune proteins.
Why do octopuses have three hearts? Gill and systemic flow
Octopuses use two branchial hearts to oxygenate blood at the gills and one systemic heart to supply the body. Learn how their circulatory system functions.
Do jellyfish have brains? Nerve nets, senses and feeding
No, jellyfish have no brains. Discover how nerve nets, rhopalia and light sensors guide sensing, swimming and feeding.
How do jellyfish reproduce: medusae, polyps and strobilation
Jellyfish alternate sexual medusae with cloning polyps. This guide follows eggs to planulae, scyphistomae, strobilation and ephyrae.
Biggest jellyfish in the world: bell diameter and tentacle length
The lion’s mane jelly is the largest true jelly, reaching bells of 3 m and tentacles of 30 m, alongside the heavy 200 kg Nomura’s jellyfish.
Are jellyfish immortal? Turritopsis reversal, cyst and lifespan
No, only Turritopsis dohrnii can repeatedly revert to a polyp, and even it often dies. Learn how the cyst stage works and how compass jellyfish differ.
Can penguins fly? Wing stroke, bones and how deep they dive
Penguins cannot fly through the air: their wings are built to propel them underwater. Here are wing strokes, beat rates, bones and dive depths.