Platypus Conservation Initiative
@Platypus_CI
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Conserving platypuses and their freshwater habitats through research, advocacy, and education for over a decade.
Joined August 2020
This rescued juvenile platypus melted 8 million hearts on Instagram. Now it's your turn, X. Cared for by @Platypus_CI and released back home. We promise it’s the cutest thing you’ll see. Let’s break the internet. Share far and wide!🧡
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Don't forget. Tomorrow @ the Australian Museum. A monotreme extravaganza.
Monotremes—ancient, egg-laying mammals—once thrived across Australia, New Guinea, South America & Antarctica. Now, only the platypus & echidnas remain. Why they vanished from some regions is still a mystery. Join the Monotreme RZS NSW Forum 30 August 2025
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A study on platypus mortality (1989-2024) reveals top threats: drowning in fish nets/enclosed traps (55%), canid predation (13%), angling hooks/line (9%), litter entanglement (6%), & vehicle strikes (6%). Victoria's trap ban cut deaths dramatically. Read more:
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After 62 years, it lives! Attenborough’s long-beaked echidna, one of the world’s rarest mammals, has been rediscovered in New Guinea. Guided by Indigenous knowledge, researchers captured it using camera traps.
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Ahrens (2025) shows Melbourne’s smaller dams (~30-40m) allow platypus gene flow, sustaining connectivity. But Mijangos (2022) finds tall dams (>70m) block migration, increasing genetic divergence. Bypass structures and translocation across large dams are key for platypus
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Exciting news from Royal National Park! More platypuses are being reintroduced, bolstering a thriving population after decades of absence. This conservation success story is a testament to collaborative efforts in restoring native wildlife .
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Platypuses have 10 sex chromosomes (males 5X+5Y, females 10X). Most mammals have just two (XY/XX). Birds use a ZW system (ZZ/ZW). The echidna, another monotreme, also has multiple sex chromosomes, with males having 9 (5X + 4Y) and females having 10X.
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What is unique about the platypus sex chromosome system compared to most mammals? Check the comments for the answer and how it stacks up against other species #WeirdScience
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The platypus!.Mammals like the platypus trace back over 200 million years. The first flowering plants? Only about 130 million years ago.
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What came first — the flower or the platypus?.Answer in the comment below 👀.#evolution #naturequiz
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5/5 The Platypus Conservation Initiative is dedicated to protecting platypus habitats through research and collaboration. Our work, like the Snowy River study, informs strategies to safeguard burrows and boost breeding success.
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4/5 Consistent water levels reduce erosion and flooding risks, fostering healthy platypus populations.
waternsw.com.au
Protecting platypus burrows with early water transfer
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3/5 Stable lows, like those from WaterNSW’s initiative, help ensure breeding success. Our Snowy River study (shows managed water flows create stable riverbank conditions, supporting platypus burrow integrity.
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2/5 Platypuses build burrows along riverbanks to lay eggs and raise young. These burrows, dug into stable soil above waterlines, are vulnerable to fluctuating water levels. Sudden rises can flood nests, threatening eggs and juveniles.
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1/5 WaterNSW is implementing an early water transfer in the Hawkesbury-Nepean system to encourage platypuses to burrow higher during the breeding season and help protect their breeding burrows from inundation @NSWDCCEEW_Water.
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The platypus sports the second-densest fur among mammals—up to 800 hairs per square millimeter, just behind the sea otter's 1,000 hpsm. This waterproof coat, with coarse guard hairs and soft underfur, traps air to insulate against cold water, perfect for chilly streams.
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RT @theCEWH: An important CEWH funded research project is looking at the impact of #waterfortheenvironment on Northern Basin platypus. @UNS….
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