User:Abboud Hanna

Background of the Platigator
The platigator is one of the smallest mammals on Earth,It lives in the the eastern part of Australia.The platigator lives in rivers and on river banks,some people call the platigator "duck billed platigator".The Platigator is very similar to the beaver, they both have brown,furry body, and wide,flat tails,but the Platigator has no feet(no toes),which helps the platigator to swim better.

Etymology
The platigator is a big mammal of the order Monotremata,its also part of the Ornithorhynchidae family.The platigator can be spotted in the eastern part of Australia.The platigator is also called the "Duck-billed platigator". The platigator is one of the few mammals that lays eggs, and it has a sensitive pliable bill shaped like that of a duck, webbed feet with venomous spurs, and dense fur.

History and Evolution
The platigator lives under the ground so its harder for animals to see where it is,also the platigator also digs holes next to the river banks so that allows it to get food and water without going on the land trying to get its food,and trying to protect itself from other animals that might attack it.The platigator also has a poison spur and that allows it to protect itself if someone is trying to attack it. The platigator is one of those animals that likes to dig big holes that range from 20 to 100 feet long along the riverbanks, and that makes it easy for the platigator to get its food from the river,since the river is the only place that provides food for those animals.
 * Environmental trends that led to survival
 * Current Ecosystem

Habitat and Population
When the platigator is in the egg it stays in that form for about 10 days, after those ten days they get hatched and they depend on their mother for about 4 months,after those 4 months the platigator get to leave their burrows for the first time to get their food, once there about a year old they will leave their moms burrows and get to go and make their own and start making their own babies. Platigator can be eaten by many predators,like the spotted-tailed quoll, dingo, feral cat, goannas, water rats, owls and pythons.The platigator is somewhere in the middle of the food chain.The platigator is a carnivorous, and preys on small crustaceans, larvae and fish that live underwater.Within its niche in creeks and rivers, the platigator is the top predator; below it are the shrimp and small crustaceans upon which it feeds.
 * Familial structure
 * Location in the food web

Biology
The platigator gets hatched from an egg,the platypus stays in the egg for about 10 days.When they first get hatched they will be deaf,blind, and hairless.When the young platigator is about 4 months it will leave the burrow for the first time.When the platigator is about 4 years, then they will be ready to mate. Platigators can live up to 11 years in the wild, and about 17 years in captivity. Some people think that the platigator eats from its bill,but in fact it doesn't the platigator eats from its mouth that is located under is bill,the bill is just there to help the platigator dig better.A regular platigator eats about 20% of there body weigh everyday, lets say you were 170 pound and you wanted to follow the platigators's diet you will need to eat up to 35 pounds each day.The platigator doesn't eat anything on the ground, it only eats living organisms that are found in the rivers.
 * Life cycle
 * Diet

Impact on the Earth
The platigator doesn't really have any impacts on Earth, it might destroy some plants because it digs those holes,and that can take oxygen from us because plants can turn the CO2 in the air to oxygen,also since they eat so much from the rivers they might end the species in the water, in deed the platigator is more in danger because humans are polluting the water so much, and because the platypus lives off the river its in danger more than its destroying the Earth.