How do monotreme babies get milk?

From patches on the mother's skin

How old is the monotreme lineage?

Very ancient, splitting from other mammals long ago

Monotremes Quiz: Egg-Laying Mammals of Australia

This monotremes quiz meets the oldest branch of living mammals. Play 10 interactive questions on laying eggs, the platypus and four echidna species, Australia and New Guinea, milk from skin patches with no nipples, the single opening called a cloaca, electroreception in bills and beaks, low body temperatures and the venomous spur of the male platypus.

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🎯 Daily Trivia Challenge • 🧠 10 Questions • ⏱️ 150 Seconds

Question 1 / 10 Time: 150s

Trait
What makes monotremes unusual among mammals?
Members
Which animals are monotremes?
Echidnas
How many echidna species are there?
Where
Where do monotremes live?
Milk
How do monotreme babies get milk?
Name
What does monotreme mean?
Sense
Which special sense do they use to find prey?
Temp
How do their body temperatures compare to most mammals?
Spur
What do male platypuses have on their hind legs?
Old
How old is the monotreme lineage?

Explanations: answer key for all 10 questions

Q1: What makes monotremes unusual among mammals?
Answer: They lay eggs
Few mammals do this.
Q2: Which animals are monotremes?
Answer: The platypus and echidnas
Five species survive.
Q3: How many echidna species are there?
Answer: Four
One short-beaked and three long-beaked.
Q4: Where do monotremes live?
Answer: Australia and New Guinea
They are found nowhere else.
Q5: How do monotreme babies get milk?
Answer: From patches on the mother's skin
Milk seeps out for them to lap.
Q6: What does monotreme mean?
Answer: Single opening
It refers to the cloaca.
Q7: Which special sense do they use to find prey?
Answer: Electroreception
Bills and beaks detect electric fields.
Q8: How do their body temperatures compare to most mammals?
Answer: Lower
It saves energy.
Q9: What do male platypuses have on their hind legs?
Answer: Venomous spurs
Venom is used in fights.
Q10: How old is the monotreme lineage?
Answer: Very ancient, splitting from other mammals long ago
Fossils date back many millions of years.

Mammals That Lay Eggs

Monotremes are mammals that lay eggs, an ancient branch that split from other mammals many millions of years ago. Only five species survive: the platypus and four echidnas, one short-beaked and three long-beaked, living in Australia and New Guinea.

The name monotreme means single opening, referring to the cloaca used for waste and reproduction. Mothers have no nipples; milk seeps from patches of skin for babies to lap up. Their body temperatures are lower than most mammals'.

Monotremes use electroreception, sensing electric fields from prey with their bills and beaks. Male platypuses carry venomous spurs on their hind legs, used in fights with rivals during the breeding season, and their venom can cause intense pain in people.

What This Quiz Teaches

Animal fans will enjoy these questions.

What monotremes are
Which species exist
How babies feed
Which senses they use
What makes males unusual

Did You Know?

Platypus fur glows under UV light.
Echidna eggs hatch in a pouch.
Early scientists thought the platypus was a hoax.
Monotremes lack true teeth as adults.
Fossils show ancient relatives in South America.