Only male platypuses have venomous spurs. The amount of venom a male platypus produces also increases during breeding season, so scientists believe it is used as a weapon against rival males.

SYDNEY, Australia -- With a bill like a duck, a tail like a beaver and snakelike venom hidden in heel spurs, the platypus could be the result of some strange genetic experiment. And it is, scientists ...

It's the Platypus Trophy, and precisely like its namesake, it has spent the past 66 years stealthily burrowing its way in and ...

A three-year survey of the duck-billed animal suggested its numbers had fallen by 30 percent, to around 200,000, since Europeans settled the continent two centuries ago. "We have great concerns about ...

Male platypuses have sharp spurs on their back legs shaped like a canine tooth. These hollow spurs measure 0.59 to 0.71 inches long and connect to crural glands in the animal’s upper thighs. These ...