Conducting a census on the platypus.

Platypus Census

Researchers are trying to track and count one of Australia's most mysterious creatures. They're spending 3 years scouring riverbeds in New South Wales for Platypuses.

CARL: An Australian native with soft dense fur. Is that it!?

CARL: Oh, nope. That's just a rat.

CARL: A duck-shaped bill, there's one!

CARL: Ah, nope. That's just a duck.

CARL: Webbed feet! This has to be it.

CARL: Oh! You'd think given the platypus has so many unusual traits they'd be easier to find!

CARL: Hang on, why are you wearing flippers in the middle of a park Matt?

CARL: Well, I guess there's always one way to find a platypus in Australia, no matter where you are. By digging around for some loose change!

Even though it's easy enough to find pictures of this Aussie native, tracking down the real thing in the wild is actually really difficult. But that's exactly what these guys are trying to do. Their goal is to put together the most accurate count of platypuses in the wild ever! Basically, a platypus census!

There could be anywhere between 10-thousand and a 100-thousand platypuses living along the east coast between Tassie and Queensland. But no one really knows exactly how many! That's partly because these cute little critters are nocturnal - meaning they mostly come out at night - and partly because they spend a lot of time underwater or in their burrows.

That combo means these scientists from the University of New South Wales will have to wait very patiently through lots of cold nights for the next three years to try to tally them all up!

PLATYPUS COUNTER: So that's a female, so no spurs.

The platypus is a really, really unusual animal. It belongs to a tiny group of mammals called 'monotremes', which only includes platypuses and echidnas!

While most mammals give birth to live young, monotremes lay eggs! They also have a few other odd traits, like the male platypus's venomous barb!

In dreamtime stories, Indigenous Australians describe the platypus as a cross between a duck and a rat. And because they're so unusual, when the first platypus was sent to scientists in England they thought it was a hoax - believing someone had stitched different animals together!

We've learned a lot about the platypus since then. But figuring out exactly how many are out there has proved tricky. And knowing how many are hiding in the wild is important.

Some are worried things like foxes, riverbank erosion, and even dams are threatening platypuses. So, by tallying up how many are out there, and where they're living, we could figure out better ways to protect them.

CARL: Ah! Eggs! I must be close!

AMELIA: Carl, stop.

CARL: Oh.

Well I guess we'll just leave the platypus count to the experts.

Discussion Questions

    1. Briefly summarise the Platypus Census story.
    2. Platypuses are not native to Australia. True or false?
    3. What are some unique features of the platypus?
    4. Why are scientists conducting a platypus census?
    5. Where in Australia do platypuses live?
    6. Platypuses are nocturnal. What does that mean?
    7. Mammals that lay eggs are called _____________________.
    8. What feature does the male platypus have?
    9. How did Indigenous Australians describe the platypus?
    10. Name three things you learnt watching the Platypus Census story.

Comments (29)

Add your comment

  • Sean :

    17 Mar 2017 10:56:26am

    I strongly agree whith trying to find the amount of platypus because you need to find out because they could be a threat to there life

  • kayla :

    17 Mar 2017 10:55:57am

    I think we should'nt use nets to capture platypuses because they could get stuck in the nets.

  • Brody :

    17 Mar 2017 10:55:36am

    Very interesting video about platypuses! I never knew that platypuses are hard to find!

  • Hayley :

    17 Mar 2017 10:54:05am

    I think that is a good idea because platypuses are a unique animal so I think that we should see how meany platypuses we have in NSW to get an idea how many platypuses we have in Australia.

  • Ryan :

    17 Mar 2017 10:53:14am

    I think these are one of the cutest Aussie animals mate ayyoy

  • Anyssa :

    17 Mar 2017 10:52:58am

    To BTN

    I am really exited when the Cencus of the platypuses are out I want to see how many of the platypuses there are because I've always loved platypuses and I can tell my mum there is going to be a cencus p.s my mum loves platypuses....also I was hoping that the people find the platypuses really quickly so its not a hassle for them. From Anyssa A big fan of btn

  • Leearna :

    17 Mar 2017 10:01:06am

    I watch btn all the time

  • Amy :

    16 Mar 2017 3:03:24pm

    Dear BTN,

    The platypus that is shown on the video is very cute. I think they worked very hard on finding the platypus. Platypus is looks very unique because of there weird body parts.

  • Alex :

    16 Mar 2017 3:01:34pm

    At first, I thought they were trying to find the platypuses and put them into zoos. I think it's a good idea to find them because platypuses look cute so why not help them?
    P.S: Beware the poisonous barb!

  • trev :

    16 Mar 2017 2:59:02pm

    I like this news so much!

  • Justin :

    16 Mar 2017 2:58:44pm

    dear btn
    i would like to know if you know how many platypuses are in the east coast of australia.by the way my poll opinion is YES

  • jeferson :

    16 Mar 2017 2:58:38pm

    I found this video really interesting.

  • Irene :

    16 Mar 2017 2:11:44pm

    I didn't know that they were that different from other animals

  • Courtney :

    16 Mar 2017 12:00:12pm

    This is a great report. I think that this platypus census is a great idea, as long as we are not harming the platypuses by carrying the census out it is an great idea to let the people of Australia know how many of these wonderful creatures we have swimming around in our lakes

  • seth :

    16 Mar 2017 11:59:48am

    I think the report was really good.
    I think everyone should get vaccinated so other people don't get sick.I don't think that children should get banned from childcare centers and preschools. I think it should be up to the parents to chose if they want their children to get vaccinated or not.

  • Nereena :

    16 Mar 2017 11:59:08am

    This is silly! Just to count the poor little things, the scientists are hurting the platypuses, trapping them in contraptions and such!
    I think they should stop, for they could hurt the population greatly.

  • Phillip :

    16 Mar 2017 11:50:17am

    its very weird how there really hard to find in Australia. And how the aboriginals thought that the platypus was a combination of different animals pretty cool.

  • josh :

    16 Mar 2017 11:45:44am

    Interesting facts

  • sunny :

    16 Mar 2017 10:22:01am

    Platypuses are getting endangered because people are fishing and hurting them. People are also hunting them for skin. Platapuses do not not deserved to be hunted because they're on our 20c coins and are an important Australian symbol.

  • Zara :

    15 Mar 2017 11:11:20am

    Platypus Census
    • I never knew that in dreamtime stories, Indigenous Australians describe the platypus as a cross between a duck and a rat. I think that it is interesting that when the first platypus was sent to scientists in England, they thought it was a hoax - believing someone had stitched different animals together! If I could, I would want to hold one and know how many of them are there exactly in the world.

  • Mia :

    15 Mar 2017 11:10:21am


    I enjoyed your segment on platypuses I found it interesting especially the part about when scientists first found it they thought that someone stitched different animal parts together! Did you know that the venom in a male’s barb is dangerous enough to kill a small animal like a dog but not enough to kill a person? The males use it in breeding season to compete with other males they also use it to defend themselves. I only have on question how did the platypus evolve?

  • Arwen :

    15 Mar 2017 11:09:34am

    PLATYPUS CENSUS I found it funny when the scientist thought that it was a bunch of animals all stuck together. Please tell me why are platypus called platypus.

  • Asha :

    15 Mar 2017 11:08:04am

    Thank you for doing a show about platypuses. I think that the platypus topic is very interesting. I was amazed to find out that platypuses are like a rat crossed with a duck. Also I didn't know that platypuses are nocturnal.

  • Elsa :

    15 Mar 2017 11:05:24am

    Hi Nathan,
    Thank you for the updates. I can’t believe when the platypus was being examined the examiners thought that someone had sewn on the platypuses limbs and snout! Also that platypus where considered half rat and half duck. I hope that they find out the platypus population soon.

  • Ewan :

    15 Mar 2017 11:02:24am

    Platypus Census

    Hey Carl, I found The Platypus Census Interesting, but it would take ages to count most of the platypuses. I didn’t know that male platypuses had a venomous barb.

  • hi :

    15 Mar 2017 7:25:58am

    I LOVE PLATYPUSES
    i even made a dream time story about them for my buddy ; he said it was his favourite story ever
    ( i m in Y6)

  • lily :

    14 Mar 2017 5:20:32pm

    why just look in new south wales????????