These egg-laying oddities are more birdlike than previously thought
Platypus Anatomy Just Got Weirder
https://nautil.us/platypus-anatomy-just-got-weirder-1279056
https://nautil.us/platypus-anatomy-just-got-weirder-1279056
These egg-laying oddities are more birdlike than previously thought
6 Comments
ragica@lemmy.ml · 13 pts · 183d
::: spoiler Tap for spoiler "Biologists from Ghent University in Belgium looked at platypus melanosomes—specialized pigment-bearing organelles inside cells—under an electron microscope. To their surprise, they discovered that the melanosomes were hollow and spherical. Previously, only birds were thought to possess hollow melanosomes, which produce more vibrant iridescent colors in their plumage." :::
actionjbone@sh.itjust.works · 4 pts · 183d
No it didn't. They've been that way for as long as we've known about their existence. We just didn't know this detail.
crandlecan@mander.xyz · 8 pts · 183d
... got weirder (to us).
It's how language works. Some words are silent.
actionjbone@sh.itjust.works · -1 pts · 183d
What do mean, some are?
solo@piefed.social · 7 pts · 183d
I suppse this is a fair point, but I do have a slight objection to your statement. It's not possible that they have always been this way. They are creatures that evolve, just like all living beings.
(Now that I think about it, even non-living stuff change through time)
actionjbone@sh.itjust.works · 1 pts · 183d
You are technically correct. I have updated the language of my post.