Discussion Topic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 6

Discussion Topic - Essay Example They are naturally buoyant; this feature helps them stay under water because they keep swimming with ease. Their short tail is not meant for propelling them in water as it is thought; its purpose is storage of fats that enhance their buoyancy. Their mouth looks like that of a duck to facilitate their feeding under water. Platypuses are carnivores. They are bottom feeders. They scoop up shellfish, insects along with their larvae, as well as worms in their bill together with bits of gravel and mud. Since they lack teeth, the bits of gravel plays a major role to assist them chew their food. Other animals also eat platypuses. Their natural predators include snakes, water rats, owls, goannas, and hawks in addition to eagles. There are a reduced number of platypuses in northern Australia due to predation by crocodiles (Nowak, 1999). There are concerns about the reduced population of duck billed platypuses in Australia. Within the past 100 years, their population has been reducing drastically due to a number of factors. The main factor that has contributed to their population is increased mortality because of eaten by many natural predators. The introduction of red foxes for hunting in 1845, has largely contributed to decrease in number of platypuses that live on the main land. Australia is trying to put in place measures that will assist maintain population of platypuses. The climate changes that are being experienced in the world today are not because of nature. In the past years when there were few human activities in the environment, there was no changes in climate as it is being experienced within recent years. Human activities are the main causes of climate changes in the world today. Human activities cause changes in the atmosphere by releasing green house gasses, and aerosols or else small particles into the atmosphere. Major activity that contributes to atmospheric