Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!usc!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!lll-winken!uunet!munnari.oz.au!metro!cluster!andrewt
From: andrewt@cluster.cs.su.oz.au (Andrew Taylor)
Newsgroups: sci.bio
Subject: Re: What's a monotreme?
Keywords: monotremes
Message-ID: <2347@cluster.cs.su.oz.au>
Date: 27 Apr 91 15:32:00 GMT
References: <1991Apr22.111159.29888@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu> <4896@kitty.UUCP> <217@tdatirv.UUCP>
Organization: Dept. of Comp. Science, Uni of Sydney, Australia
Lines: 12

In article <217@tdatirv.UUCP>, sarima@tdatirv.UUCP (Stanley Friesen) writes:
> I had heard (vaguely) about some sub-recent (Plio-Pliestecene) monotremes,
> But a mid-Cretaceous platypus I had *not* heard of!
> (BTW are you *sure* of that date, I would have thought that would be such
> a major find I would have heard of it).

The 110 million year date is correct (see Nature 318:363-366). Also in 1985
a 15 million year old platypus skull (Obdurodon dicksoni) was found at
the Riversleigh site in Northern Queensland. Hopefully Riversleigh will
yield more platypus fossils.

Andrew Taylor