ESCONDIDO, Calif. (KGTV) - Researchers with the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance are taking part in a brand new study to learn the impacts of climate change on the world's platypus population.
As the only zoo outside of Australia with a platypus on exhibit, the zoo is uniquely positioned to take part.
"This is why we're here," says Dr. Hendrik Nollens, the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance's VP of Wildlife Health. "We are a conservation organization. We have these animals so we can speak to them, so they can tell their story, and so we can learn from them and make that available for their wildlife counterparts."
The "Platypus Research Program" will be primarily conducted in Australia, in partnership with the Taronga Zoo in Sydney and the University of New South Wales. Researchers hope to study the animals in the wild, and at the brand new "Platypus Rescue HQ" to learn how the platypus is impacted by climate change.
"Platypus is an excellent example, an excellent ambassador, kind of in a bad way, of how wildlife gets impacted by climate change," says Dr. Nollens. "There are already dire conditions, there's already pressure, stressors on these animals. Many of those things, a lot of time, get exacerbated by climate change."
While not listed as "endangered," the platypus population is considered "threatened." Because of their elusive nature and murky, hard to find habitat, zoologists have a hard time estimating how many live in the wild. It's believed that number could range from 30,000 to 300,000.
The study aims to learn when the wild platypus population needs help during extreme weather events, like wildfires or excessive heat. The researchers will try to determine when it's appropriate to step in, the best practices to holding wild platypuses in captivity and when it's safe to set them free.
They also want to build a genome bank to promote diversity in breeding.
Since 1943, only 23 platypus babies, called "puggles," have been born in captivity. Understanding the genome of the wild population may help bring that number up.
"Climate change seems like an overwhelming problem," says Dr. Nollens. "But there are things we can do. And it doesn't take the whole world to collaborate. It just takes two organizations, like Taronga and San Diego Zoo, to make things happen."
