The name Monotremata means “one hole,” a reference to the single anal opening (cloaca) which these mammals share with reptiles, amphibians, and fishes. They were named by Etienne Geoffroy Saint-Hailaire, an early French scientist who embraced the new science of evolution. He wanted to establish monotremes as a new class of vertebrates, separate from mammals.
NOT my own pictures – Pictures Obtained from Various Sources
