Platypus!

We learned that just down the road in Geeveston is a place to see platypus. It is in fact just beside the road. The town has created a viewing platform where you can stand and, with a little luck, see platypus swimming about. We have done exactly that. Check another item off the bucket list!

It seems the critters release air before surfacing and the bubbles make a tell that lets you anticipate their arrival. This, along with the ripples in the calm surface of the stream, make it easy (when they are active) to know where they went down last and to see where they are coming back up. Unlike diving ducks, the separation between submersion and re-emergence is not a long distance (the stream is small).

This are well designed to blend in with the water and the bank of the stream. The duckbill is clearly prominent and in some shots you can just make out the webbed feet. That beaver-like tail is also pretty obvious.

The amazing thing is that this fellow is swimming in a stream filled with really cold water. Just standing the damp air next to the river we can see our breath and the cold is penetrating. I can't imagine what it is like to be immersed in the water. Apparently, however, he likes it.