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Discovery Magazine 07/01/2012


The Puzzling Platypus is No Product of Evolution

Scientists classify the platypus as a mammal, yet it is unlike any other mammal youhave ever seen. It is about the size of a house cat with fur thicker than a polar bear's. It can store food in its mouth like a chipmunk. It has a beaver-like tail and webbed feet like an otter. It has a bill like a duck and spurs like a rooster. What's more, it lays eggs like a turtle and produces venom like a snake. If there was ever an animal to call "unique," it would be the platypus.

Platypuses show every indication of being designed by the grand Designer.

  • God designed their feet to work extremely well in water and on land. They flatten their roll-away webbing beyond their claws in order to maximize their movements in water. Then, when they need to walk or run on land or burrow in the riverbank, they can quickly roll back their webbing under their claws.
  • God gave the platypus thick fur to stay warm in cold waters. A platypus has about 800 hairs per square millimeter of skin (compared to the human who has about two hairs per square millimeter on his head). The platypus' fur is so dense that it can trap a layer of air next to its skin.This air works as insulation to keep the platypus warm.
  • How can the platypus completely close its eyes and ears under water and find enough food to survive? Does it just clumsily tumble bill-first into the bottoms of rivers and streams in hopes of getting lucky? Actually, God designed this curious creature with a very sensitive snout. Scientists have learned that the platypus' leathery bill has a complex electro-receptor system in it. This system allows the platypus to sense the weak electric impulses in the muscles of its prey, including earthworms, tadpoles, and shrimp, which often are hiding under the mud and rocks.

Like so many animals that scientists study, the more scientists learn about the platypus, the more amazed they are with this curious creature. Although evolutionists would have us believe that this unique animal is the product of many millions of years of evolution, in reality, the duck-billed platypus declares the glory of God.

"You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created" (Revelation 4:11).



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