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RESEARCH ARTICLE
Contents Vol 47(2)

Movements and burrow use of newly emerged juvenile and adult female platypuses

Max Boulton A , Jessica Thomas B * , Gilad Bino C , Jessica Clayton A , Guido J. Parra A and Ryan Baring A
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A College of Sciences and Engineering, Flinders University, Sturt Road, Bedford Park, SA 5042, Australia.

B Healesville Sanctuary, Healesville, Vic 3777, Australia.

C Platypus Conservation Initiative, Centre for Ecosystem Science, School of Biological, Earth & Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia.

* Correspondence to: jthomas@zoo.org.au

Handling Editor: Ross Goldingay

Australian Mammalogy 47, AM24037 https://doi.org/10.1071/AM24037
Submitted: 24 October 2024  Accepted: 28 April 2025  Published: 20 May 2025

© 2025 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing on behalf of the Australian Mammal Society.

Abstract

The platypus, a unique mammal endemic to freshwater ecosystems in eastern Australia, faces population declines owing to various anthropogenic pressures. Despite its ecological importance, substantial knowledge gaps exist concerning juvenile movements and adult–juvenile interactions. We investigated total range, burrow range, active range, and burrow usage of platypuses in Coranderrk Creek, Victoria. We radio-tracked three adult female and three juvenile platypuses, recording the location of their resting burrows during the day and their movements during the night. Our results showed that juveniles exhibited significantly larger total ranges (mean juvenile 1473 ± 735 m; adult 920 ± 373 m) and daily ranges than did adults (mean juveniles 568 ± 407 m; adult 306 ± 226 m). Juveniles also had larger burrow ranges and travelled further from their burrows each night. Although no significant differences were observed in total number of burrows used between adults and juveniles, juveniles tended to use more moderate-use burrows (used 2–9 times), whereas adults favoured frequent-use burrows (used >10 times). Additionally, juvenile–adult dyads demonstrated the greatest total range (burrow and active range combined) overlap, and several instances of burrow sharing between adults and juveniles were observed. These findings suggest that juvenile platypuses are more exploratory, with larger ranges and more diverse burrow use patterns than adults. Our study has provided new insights into the spatial behaviour and social interactions of the platypus.

Keywords: burrow range, food abundance, foraging, home range, juvenile, maternal care, movements, platypus.

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