Platypus venom

Rather than being a unique outlier, the platypus is the last demonstration of what was once a common mammalian characteristic, and it can be used as a model for non-therian mammals and their venom delivery and properties.

Female platypuses, in common with echidnas, have rudimentary spur buds that do not develop (dropping off before the end of their first year) and lack functional crural glands.

[8] This venom appears to be related to that of several species that are not part of the platypus's evolutionary lineage, such as certain fish, reptiles, insectivores, and spiders, sea anemones, and starfish.

While some muscle wastage has been observed in cases of envenomation in humans, it is likely due to the inability to use the limb while the effects of the venom persist.

Since production rises during the breeding season, it is theorised that the venom is used as an offensive weapon to assert dominance and to control territory during this period.

Information obtained from case studies shows that the pain develops into a long-lasting hyperalgesia that can persist for months but usually lasts from a few days to a few weeks.

[13] In 1991 Keith Payne, a former member of the Australian Army and recipient of the Victoria Cross (Australia's highest award for valour), was struck on the hand by a platypus spur while trying to rescue the stranded animal.