Platypus Hunts with "Sixth Sense"
With the tail of a beaver, and a bill like a duck's, the platypus is a real ungainly creature. But there's more to this strange killer than meets the eye.
Transcript
Narration:
Underwater, this ungainly creature has a sixth sense that is hard to beat.
Australia's platypus has the tail of a beaver, webbed feet, and a bill like a duck.
But this is no ordinary bill.
It is a super-sensory organ laden with thousands of cells responsive to the electric fields generated by all living things.
So to hunt, the platypus closes its eyes, its ears and its nose, and lets its bill do the work.
Called "electro-location," it is thought the waving back-and-forth motion we see here helps the platypus to locate exactly where electric pulses are coming from.
The pulses are like neon signs advertising fast food.
And when one looks promising, the platypus digs away...all thanks to its sixth sense.
