Question

An egg-laying mammal is
a) Cow
b) Whale
c)Platypus
d)Rat

Answer 1

Hint The animals are classified as the oviparous and viviparous animals. The oviparous animals are those which lay eggs and then the young ones hatch from them. The viviparous animals are those animals that give birth directly to a mature young baby. Their development is usually internal.

Complete animal: Platypus is only the egg-laying mammal present. it lays eggs and then hatches them so that their young ones can develop. The development is outside the body and not inside. It is classified in the mammals due to the presence of fur on its body and it feeds the young ones with the milk produced by the female. It also has birds and reptiles featured on them, like the webbed feet, duck-like bill and it mostly lives underwater.

Additional information: The cow, whale, and rat give birth to the young ones directly and the eggs are not formed. These animals are viviparous in nature. The development of the animals takes place inside the womb of the mother and is fed through the placenta. The birth of the oviparous is different from that of the viviparous as the oviparous baby doesn’t receive from the mother but has stored food in the egg which it uses for its development. The eggs need the proper amount of warmth of the mother so that they can develop properly. If they don’t receive an ample amount of warmth then it may lead to some deformation or death of the baby inside the eggs.

So, the answer is ‘platypus’.

Note: The platypus evolution took place from the reptiles and birds but it is not classified in their category because of its similarities to the mammals. Platypus is an amphibian who can live in both water and land and has become endemic in nature.