Platypus Diary

Pebbles the platypus lives in Ten Mile Creek in rural south-east Queensland near the NSW border. Every month she writes about her life in her burrow, her creek and how she copes with the changing seasons and conditions.

What happened in September? Find out more about the adventures of Pebbles the Platypus...

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August

Well we had some excitement here! That new boy platypus who arrived in the creek last month really made his presence felt. The old man platypus who lives up beyond the big log fall and the new boy were in the swimming hole. They started pushing and shoving each other around. Next thing, they are both wrestling in the deep water and trying to jab each other with the poison spurs on their heels. It could have got quite nasty but the old man platypus just isn't as strong and heavy as he used to be. He wriggled free and swam for home - so the new boy is king of the swimming hole now.

We bumped into each other the next day as we were both looking for freshwater shrimps where the little waterfall comes over the stones. I made sure that I swam past him lots of times until he noticed me and started doing the same. I knew he liked me when he got cheeky and made a grab for my tail with his bill. It was very romantic…

I'm really finding so much more to eat now that Spring is here. I think I'll go and look for some nice caddisfly or mayfly larvae. There might even be some horsehair worms around. I find those by fossicking along the bottom of the creek with my bill. The horny pads in my bill and jaw help me grind up my food and then I swallow it. I don't have teeth like you humans, but I don't really need them.

Fish eggs would be a nice treat too. The fish swim about over me when I'm diving but I can't catch fish, they are too big. I only eat what I can find on the bottom of the creek.