Here's a breakdown of what makes their reproduction unusual:
* Laying eggs: This is the most obvious and unusual feature. The eggs are leathery, similar to reptile eggs, and are incubated by the mother.
* Having a pouch: While they lay eggs, monotremes also have a pouch, similar to marsupials, where they nurture their young after hatching.
* Lactation: Like all mammals, monotremes produce milk to nourish their young. However, they don't have teats like other mammals; instead, they have specialized milk patches where their offspring lick milk.
These unique reproductive traits make monotremes fascinating and highlight their evolutionary history as a group that branched off from other mammals very early on.