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menu-item-11670"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/platypus-reproduction/">Reproduction</a></li> <li id="menu-item-11671" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-11671"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/platypus-courtship-mating-and-nest-building/">Courtship, mating and nest-building</a></li> <li id="menu-item-11672" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-11672"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/platypus-communication/">Communication</a></li> <li id="menu-item-11673" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-11673"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/platypus-mortality-factors/">Mortality factors</a></li> </ul> </li> <li id="menu-item-2003" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-has-children menu-item-2003"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/evolution-names/">Names & Evolution</a> <ul class="sub-menu"> <li id="menu-item-11638" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-11638"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/platypus-names-including-whats-the-plural-of-platypus/">Names (including “What’s the plural of platypus?”)</a></li> <li id="menu-item-11640" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-11640"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/the-platypuss-fossil-history/">Fossil history</a></li> <li id="menu-item-11641" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-11641"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/echidnas-the-other-modern-monotremes/">Echidnas – the other modern monotremes</a></li> </ul> </li> <li id="menu-item-2001" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-has-children menu-item-2001"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/distribution-numbers/">Platypus Status</a> <ul class="sub-menu"> <li id="menu-item-12577" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-12577"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/conservation-status/">Platypus conservation status</a></li> <li id="menu-item-12578" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-12578"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/distribution/">Platypus distribution</a></li> <li id="menu-item-12576" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-12576"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/population-size-and-density/">Platypus abundance</a></li> </ul> </li> <li id="menu-item-1998" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-has-children menu-item-1998"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/faqs/">FAQs & Myths</a> <ul class="sub-menu"> <li id="menu-item-12574" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-12574"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/some-platypus-faqs/">Some platypus FAQs</a></li> <li id="menu-item-12575" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-12575"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/platypus-myths/">Some platypus myths</a></li> </ul> </li> <li id="menu-item-11819" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-has-children menu-item-11819"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/rakali-master/">Rakali</a> <ul class="sub-menu"> <li id="menu-item-11774" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-11774"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/rakali-size-and-general-features/">Size and general features</a></li> <li id="menu-item-11793" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-11793"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/rakali-distribution-and-habitats/">Distribution and habitats</a></li> <li id="menu-item-11770" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-11770"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/rakali-names-and-origin/">Names and origin</a></li> <li id="menu-item-11785" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-11785"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/rakali-spatial-use-and-shelter-sites/">Spatial use and shelter sites</a></li> <li id="menu-item-11779" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-11779"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/rakali-diet-and-foraging-behaviour/">Diet and foraging behaviour</a></li> <li id="menu-item-11782" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-11782"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/rakali-reproduction/">Reproduction</a></li> <li id="menu-item-11789" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-11789"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/rakali-conservation-status-and-concerns/">Rakali conservation status</a></li> <li id="menu-item-11791" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-11791"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/coexistence-of-rakali-and-platypus/">Coexistence of rakali and platypus</a></li> </ul> </li> <li id="menu-item-19" 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id="menu-item-11141" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-11141"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/donate-by-visa-mastercard/">Donate by Visa/Mastercard</a></li> <li id="menu-item-14252" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-14252"><a href="https://platypus.asn.au/make-a-bequest/">Make a Bequest</a></li> </ul> </li> </ul></div> </nav> </div> </header> <div id="content" class="site-content"> <div id="primary" class="content-area"> <main id="main" class="site-main" role="main"> <article id="post-11405" class="post-11405 page type-page status-publish hentry"> <header class="entry-header"> <h2 class="entry-title">Platypus venom and spurs</h2> </header> <div class="entry-content"> <div class="featured-image"> </div> <p class="has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-bb722ae6a5e16fce9f4fa7e027fd73bc">The male platypus has a conspicuous spur located on each inner hind ankle. As shown below, adult male spurs (upper photo) are typically 15-18 millimetres long and similar in shape to a dog’s canine tooth. By comparison, the developing spurs of juvenile males (lower photo) appear to be shorter and thicker than those of older animals, due to their being covered with a protective whitish layer of keratin (the same structural protein found in human fingernails). The keratin layer chips off gradually, starting at the tip, and normally is entirely gone by a young male’s first birthday. For a more detailed description of how the size and appearance of male spurs change with age, see Williams et al. (2013). Females (both juveniles and adults) lack conspicuous spurs, though tiny vestigial spur-like structures occur in females up to the age of about 9 months.</p> <figure data-carousel-extra='{"blog_id":1,"permalink":"https:\/\/platypus.asn.au\/platypus-venom-and-spurs\/"}' class="wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex"> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img data-recalc-dims="1" fetchpriority="high" decoding="async" data-attachment-id="1960" data-permalink="https://platypus.asn.au/spur-ad-male/" data-orig-file="https://i0.wp.com/platypus.asn.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/spur-ad-male.jpg?fit=480%2C290&ssl=1" data-orig-size="480,290" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="spur (ad male)" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://i0.wp.com/platypus.asn.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/spur-ad-male.jpg?fit=300%2C181&ssl=1" data-large-file="https://i0.wp.com/platypus.asn.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/spur-ad-male.jpg?fit=480%2C290&ssl=1" data-id="1960" class="wp-image-1960 alignleft" src="https://i0.wp.com/platypus.asn.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/spur-ad-male.jpg?resize=505%2C305&ssl=1" alt="An adult male platypus spur." width="505" height="305" /></figure> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img data-recalc-dims="1" decoding="async" data-attachment-id="710" data-permalink="https://platypus.asn.au/home/spur-juv-tedd/" data-orig-file="https://i0.wp.com/platypus.asn.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/spur-juv-tedd.jpg?fit=836%2C548&ssl=1" data-orig-size="836,548" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="spur-juv-tedd" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://i0.wp.com/platypus.asn.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/spur-juv-tedd.jpg?fit=300%2C197&ssl=1" data-large-file="https://i0.wp.com/platypus.asn.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/spur-juv-tedd.jpg?fit=748%2C490&ssl=1" data-id="710" class="wp-image-710 alignnone" src="https://i0.wp.com/platypus.asn.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/spur-juv-tedd.jpg?resize=514%2C337&ssl=1" alt="A juvenile male platypus spur, covered by a protective white keratin sheath" width="514" height="337" /></figure> </figure> <p class="has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-187733253852fd9386f1cbdab8b973c7">The spurs of mature adult males are designed to inject venom produced by paired glands (known as crural glands) located in the upper thigh (Temple-Smith 1973). Platypus venom is a clear, slightly sticky fluid containing a different suite of active compounds than those found in snake venoms (Koh et al. 2009). Although not known to be life-threatening, it causes severe pain and swelling which can take several weeks to subside, with muscle wasting and some degree of local swelling sometimes persisting for months (Temple-Smith 1973; Fenner et al. 1992). The pain is not relieved by standard analgesics such as morphine. However, it can be treated successfully using drugs which act to block nerve transmission (Fenner et al. 1992).</p> <p class="has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-707a38900c9589658e2f1430952e9e60">Platypus venom is only produced by mature males, and venom production peaks during the platypus breeding season. It is therefore believed that platypus venom delivery has mainly evolved to help males compete for mates (Temple-Smith 1973; Whittington and Belov 2007; Koh et al. 2009). A spurring response is triggered when an adult male is touched or stroked on its belly between the hind legs, especially in the mating period. The platypus’s hind feet rotate outwards and upwards, pulling each spur erect and locking it into position against the lower limb bones. Both spurs are then jabbed inwards with great force (Temple-Smith 1973).</p> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="alignright size-full is-resized"><img data-recalc-dims="1" decoding="async" width="748" height="1190" data-attachment-id="712" data-permalink="https://platypus.asn.au/home/scan-pmdrawing-plathold/" data-orig-file="https://i0.wp.com/platypus.asn.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/scan-pmdrawing-plathold.jpg?fit=1368%2C2176&ssl=1" data-orig-size="1368,2176" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="scan-pmdrawing-plathold" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://i0.wp.com/platypus.asn.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/scan-pmdrawing-plathold.jpg?fit=189%2C300&ssl=1" data-large-file="https://i0.wp.com/platypus.asn.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/scan-pmdrawing-plathold.jpg?fit=644%2C1024&ssl=1" class="wp-image-712" style="width: 145px; height: auto;" src="https://i0.wp.com/platypus.asn.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/scan-pmdrawing-plathold.jpg?resize=748%2C1190&ssl=1" alt="An adult male platypus can be safely held by holding the end half of the tail, which cannot be reached by his spurs." /></figure></div> <p class="has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-8260510e7da198d2155257770f461a08">To avoid being spurred by a platypus, <em>never</em> try to hold or support an adult male (or a platypus of unknown age and sex) from below. Instead, lift the animal by grasping it firmly around the <em>end</em> half of the tail (<em>not</em> the base of the tail, which can be reached by the spurs – see illustration at right). While holding a platypus in this manner, it should be easy to see if spurs are present.</p> <p class="has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-8496a240304616f6eb15661197c4daee"><em>Photos: APC; drawing at right by Peter Marsack</em></p> <p class="has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-0ff9be3aa312eb2913bbe1dbd8502c15"><strong>LITERATURE CITED</strong></p> <p class="has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-e556cdefc9f8c26a60b94c9362a076fb"><em>Fenner PJ, Williamson JA and Myers D (1992) Platypus envenomation – a painful learning experience. The Medical Journal of Australia 157, 829-832.</em></p> <p class="has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-b095d9a1a617846c0facd106b9e8fcdd"><em>Koh JMS, Bansal PS, Torres AM and Kuchel PW (2009) Platypus venom: source of novel compounds. Australian Journal of Zoology 57, 203-210.</em></p> <p class="has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-51f34ab7f70311bf314d06e313559ac2"><em>Temple-Smith PD (1973) Seasonal breeding biology of the platypus, Ornithorhynchus anatinus (Shaw 1799), with special reference to the male. PhD Thesis: Australian National University, Canberra.</em></p> <p class="has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-ccb818b30d85c59f956e0a089ea6590f"><em>Whittington CM and Belov K (2007) Platypus venom: a review. Australian Mammalogy 29: 57-62. </em></p> <p class="has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-5597a692f1926dae59b5c1c129d180fa"><em>Williams GA, Serena M and Grant TR (2013) Age-related change in spurs and spur sheaths of the platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus). 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