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Mammals that lay eggs

S

Shapeshifter

New Member
arg-fallbackName="Shapeshifter"/>
Today I wondered if there are any mammals that lay eggs, so I did some research, and there actually are! :) Didn't know that. Didn't know that the platypus is one of them, either. There only are five species of mammals that lay eggs. Thought I'd share that new gained knowledge with you. A few quotes and pictures from the Wikipedia entry:
Like other mammals, monotremes are warm-blooded with a high metabolic rate (though not as high as other mammals, see below); have hair on their bodies; produce milk through mammary glands to feed their young; have a single bone in their lower jaw; and have three middle ear bones.

Monotremes lay eggs. However, the egg is retained for some time within the mother, who actively provides the egg with nutrients. Monotremes also lactate, but have no defined nipples, excreting the milk from their mammary glands via openings in their skin.

Fossil and genetic evidence shows that the monotreme line diverged from other mammalian lines about 150 million years ago and that both the short-beaked and long-beaked echidna species are derived from a platypus-like ancestor.
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The Long-beaked Echidna looks really, really weird in my opinion. How very interesting...

photo.jpg


I mean Look at it!

While browsing, I also found this blog entry of weird looking animals. Well, well, nature is full of interesting stuff...
 
arg-fallbackName="Aught3"/>
I though there were only three egg-laying mammals the platypus and two species of echidna what are the other two?

Edit: Ah, three species of long-beaked echidna.
 
arg-fallbackName="Sando"/>
If I saw that thing in the wild I'd think someone had slipped me some magic mushrooms...
 
arg-fallbackName="Pulsar"/>
CupOfWater said:
It looks like there's a penis in its face. WTF?
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Wouldn't you like that instead of a tail, eh?
Ozymandyus said:
Better than that... it has a four headed penis.
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What? Forget what I just wrote... damn!
 
arg-fallbackName="Sando"/>
Ozymandyus said:
Better than that... it has a four headed penis.
Exhibitionist spiny anteater reveals bizarre penis

That is one insane creature. Sounds like something from a bad fantasy novel.
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"The evolutionary significance of one-sided ejaculation is unknown, but may play a role in sperm competition - where sperm from many males may compete to fertilise an egg. Indeed in the spiny anteater, up to 11 males may form a queue behind one female to copulate with her."

Those spiny anteater girls are some sluts! :p
 
arg-fallbackName="Canto"/>
And when I go look at the link, the advertisement that comes up on their site is for the Templeton Foundation.

otherwise pretty cool.
 
arg-fallbackName="Digitised"/>
This isnt surprising at all, the sexual organs of many creatures are completely bizarre to us.
Australian marsupials have 2 pronged penis's and double chambered vaginas, only one of which is for reproduction.
There are insects whos 'members' are longer than their body, some even have a 'spare' incase the original breaks.
Many creatures dont even have sex since they just fertilize eggs, or get absorbed into the females as part of the mating proces.
Some creatures change sex, some are sexless or combine both the required means to pass their own genes to themselves (such as sponges).

Nature is far weirder than just an oddly shaped animals dong..
 
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