Ornithorhynchus anatinus. Duck-billed platypus is one of the three species of monotremes. These species are unique among mammals in that they retain their ancestral characteristic of egg laying. They have a cloaca through which eggs are laid and both liquid and solid waste is eliminated. Duck-billed platypus is stream-lined and elongated, they have fur ranging from medium brown to dark brown on the dorsal side and brown to silver-gray on the ventral side