Platypus Spotting in Burnie

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Fern Glade Reserve has a reputation for being one of the most reliable places for observing platypus in the wild in Tasmania.

Decorated by nature with moss and ferns, Fern Gglade offers a place of quiet contemplation, investigation and observation, on the edge of a city.

An interpretative trail provides interesting points on the flora, fauna and location as you meander along the riverbank linking two open areas with facilities.

The water is clean, although stained by the natural tannin, and platypus thrive there.

Platypus are best viewed in the morning or evening.  Vehicle access to the reserve is restricted from dusk to dawn.

Location

Fern Glade Platypus Reserve, Fernglade Road, Burnie 7320  View Map and directions

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Fern Glade Reserve

Facility Snapshot

Features

  • Lake or River
  • Walking Trails Unpaved

Interesting Facts

  • Platypus are best viewed in the morning or evening.  
  • With its eyes, ears and nostrils closed, a Platypus uses electroreception to detect movement underwater to feed.
  • The Platypus is one of very few venomous mammals in the world. The spur on the male’s hind foot is connected to a venom-secreting gland.
  • Tasmanian platypus are relatively large, with some adult males weighing up to 3 kg. The average size of a platypus in north Queensland is 1kg.
  • They are completely carnivorous (meat-eating) and mostly eat invertebrates: swimming beetles and waterbugs, insect larvae, tadpoles, worms, snails and shrimp.
  • Platypus and echidnas are the only existing species of monotremes (egg laying mammals) on earth.
  • After burrowing deep into the riverbank, females lay one or two eggs. Here, curled up in protective chambers, they incubate the eggs between their tail and rump. Bean-sized babies emerge from the egg after 10 days and are fed milk for about four months. Milk is secreted through pores and licked off the mother’s skin or fur.

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