Slight shower late yesterday. Patchy cloud with intermittent sun. Cold, steady breeze. Track dry.

Nothing to be seen from Lloyd’s Bridge today but Thomas and I saw a Platypus as soon as we approached the Creek at the Memorial Bench. Didn’t spend long in our company and neither did another Platypus in Snodgrass’s Pool. At Platypus Bend we met a friendly Czeck family who made Thomas’s day and he would have been happy to stay with them for the afternoon. They were very excited having seen 2 Platypus and spent 20 minutes watching one.

Nothing else was seen until the approach to the Highway bridge where a small Platypus was foraging in the tree roots and hiding from view. When she headed downstream I decided to follow and when peering through the undergrowth from the higher level of the track I glimpsed her lying alongside a larger animal. Finding a clear view I observed that the male Platypus appeared to be holding her with his bill at the base of her tail and they remained in this position for a couple of minutes. They then started to swim in a circle which ended within a few seconds in a splash of water after which both vanished beneath the surface. The surfaced individually within a minute and both went their separate ways. The images suggest that the larger male raised his head and attempted to roll the female onto her back. Her fore legs can be observe crossed on her chest. The following splash obscures further activity but the time between this and separation appear inadequate for copulation to have occurred. Girl Power in Platypus culture is clearly keeping up with the rest of the World.