Imagine a creature that looks like a mashup from a child’s wildest dreams: a furry animal with the bill of a duck, the tail ...

A new study suggests the platypus and echidna — the only egg-laying mammals — had a water-dwelling ancestor. The finding ...

The clue leading to this conclusion comes down to a matter of bone density. Platypus bones are relatively compact, helping the duck-billed, beaver-tailed mammal remain under water with minimal effort.

The story of two of the strangest animals on the planet just got a little stranger, thanks to clues revealed by a lone fossil specimen that scientists now say represents a long-extinct ancestor.