CHAPTER II.

THE PHALANGER, POUCHED BADGER, AND DASYURE FAMILIES.

THE PHALANGER FAMILY--THE KOALA--Habits--Characteristics--THE CUSCUS--THE VULPINE PHALANGER--THE DORMOUSE PHALANGER--Habits--Remarkable Characters--THE FLYING PHALANGERS--Its Flying Machine--Habits--THE SQUIRREL FLYING PHALANGERS--Habits--The Parachute-like Membrane--Exciting Scene on board a Vessel--Characteristics--THE OPOSSUM MOUSE--THE NOOLBENGER, OR TAIT--A Curiosity among Marsupials--Distinctive Features--THE POUCHED BADGER FAMILY--Characteristics--THE RABBIT-EARED PERAMELES--THE BANDICOOT--THE BANDED PERAMELES--THE PIG-FOOTED PERAMELES--Discussion regarding it--Characteristics--THE DASYURUS FAMILY--Characteristics--THE POUCHED ANT-EATERS--THE BANDED MYRMECOBIUS--Description--Great number of Teeth--History--Food--Habits--Range--THE URSINE DASYURE--Appearance--“Native Devil”--Ferocity--Havoc among the Sheep of the Settlers--Trap to Catch them--Its Teeth--A True Marsupial, though strikingly like the Carnivora--Skeletal Characters peculiar to itself--MAUGE’S DASYURE--THE DOG-HEADED THYLACINUS--Description--Resemblance to the Dog--Habits--Peculiarities--THE BRUSH-TAILED PHASCOGALE--Description--Other Varieties.

III.--THE PHALANGER FAMILY.--THE PHALANGISTIDÆ.

The loftiest of the gum-trees of the country from Moreton Bay to Port Phillip, and even more widely than this, were often the familiar haunt of a small Marsupial animal, not unlike a little Bear, about two feet in length, and without a tail. It is a famous tree-climber, and its stout body, small head, short limbs, and well-developed feet, are all cased in an ash-grey fur. It has moderate-sized ears, which are hidden by the long hair of the head, and it has a short and nearly naked black muzzle. The eye is large and without eyelashes. The natives climb up the trees after it, according to Mr. Gould, with as much ease and expertness as an European would get up a long ladder, and having reached the branch, perhaps forty or fifty feet from the ground, they follow the animal to the extremity of a bough, and either kill it or take it alive. This animal is called the KOALA, and it feeds on the tender shoots of the blue gum in preference to those of any others, and it rests and feeds in the boughs. At night it descends and prowls about, scratching up the ground in search of some peculiar roots, and it seems to creep rather than to walk. When angry it utters a long, shrill yell, and assumes a fierce and menacing look. They are found in pairs, and the young soon learn to perch on the mother’s shoulders. Mr. Gould says that, unlike most quadrupeds, the Koala does not flee upon the approach of man, and that it is very tenacious of life. Even when severely wounded it will not quit its hold of the branch upon which it may be. The animal has a nice thick fur, which nearly hides the ears, and the pouch is large. A careful examination of the animal shows that it differs from the Kangaroos and Wombats; it is more like the latter than the former, but it is sufficiently distinct to be placed in another family, the Phalangers, in which the incisors are six above and two below, and there are two canines in the upper jaw, and in some, two in the lower jaw, but not in all. There are two premolars above and below, and either six or eight molars in the upper and lower jaws. The head is rather small, and the face is short, the upper lip being cleft. The limbs are equal; the fore feet have five well-made toes with compressed and curved claws; the hind feet have five toes, of which the first or inner one is large, nailless, and at right angles to the rest, and opposable to them. The second and third toes are shorter than the others, and are united in a common skin, and they have nails. The fourth and fifth toes are curved and have compressed claws. The name Phalangista is derived from this union by skin of the phalanges of the foot. The tail may be absent, or long, and more or less prehensile, but sometimes not.

There is a well-developed pouch, and the stomach is simple, and the cæcum is usually very long and large. One young one is produced at a birth.

The Koala, or Native Bear,[99] may be taken as the type of the tailless group, and it belongs to the genus _Phascolarctus_.

The CUSCUS, or Ursine Phalanger,[100] belongs to a second division, for it has a prehensile tail. They are common animals in the dense woods of the Island of Celebes. They squat on the branches half asleep by day, but are lively enough at night, and it is said that they have a fancy for flesh as well as fruit. A pretty spotted Cuscus inhabits the islands of Amboyna, Waigeoe, Banda, and New Guinea, as well as Cape York.[101] They are dull in captivity, but when placed together they fight with fury, growling like Cats, and biting. They have small red eyes with a vertical pupil, short ears, and a very stupid look. They are all nocturnal in their habits, and feed on fruit, buds, leaves, meat, and eggs.

One of the Phalangers, called _Cuscus albus_, is abundant in New Ireland, Amboyna, Banda, and Timor, and is remarkable for its peculiar odour. The male is white, and the female reddish-brown in colour, both being about the size of a common Rabbit. It is slow in its movements, lives in trees, and takes good care to conceal itself, but its scent discovers it. The naturalists Lesson and Garnet stated that when they traversed the forests of the island the odour of the Cuscus was distinctly perceptible. It is stated that if these animals see any one, they suspend themselves at once by the tail, and if they are looked at steadfastly, they will drop by-and-by from fatigue, and are then easily caught; in fact, they pretend to be dead.

THE VULPINE PHALANGER.[102]--THE BRUSH-TAILED “OPOSSUM.”

Waterhouse describes this Marsupial to be about the size of a Cat, but in shape it is somewhat between a Squirrel and a Marten. It has long and somewhat pointed ears; and the tail, clothed with bushy, harsh, black fur, except beneath, near the end, where it is naked, is about as long as the body. The limbs are rather short, the muzzle is moderately long and foxy-looking, and the whole body and head, except the naked muzzle, are covered with a grey and black fur. The moustaches are long, numerous, and black, and the feet are yellowish-white, and the naked soles are flesh-coloured, the nails being dusky. The pupil of the eye is round and intensely dark in colour. They sleep during the day, and become active during the evening, and on the alert for their food, which consists, in the Zoological Gardens, of bread and milk, fruit and vegetables. They hold up the solid food between the hands as a Squirrel holds a nut, and nibble very much in the same manner. Their native haunts are New South Wales, Western Australia, and North Australia. They inhabit the large trees, usually the Eucalypti, selecting such as have the heart of the branches or trunk decayed, and they take refuge there during the daylight. At night they leave their nests and climb the branches of the trees which yield them buds and fruit. They descend to the ground for food, and doubtless now and then eat snails and small birds. When climbing they use the tail to hold by, and carefully grasp every support with it before they let go with their feet or hands. A brown-black species, closely allied, lives in Van Diemen’s Land.[103]

THE DORMOUSE PHALANGER.[104]

This is a very small Marsupial animal, about six inches in length, including the tail, which measures nearly, if not quite, one-half. It is like a little Dormouse, with its soft fur, ashy-grey in colour, large ears, and thick tail. They are broader, not so long in the leg, and usually larger than the Dormouse, and the eyes are larger, and the upper jaw overhangs the lower. But they look just as fat and sleepy in the daytime. The habits of these animals, moreover, are much the same, for the Phalangista living in Van Diemen’s Land feeds on nuts and other similar food, which they hold in their fore paws, using them as hands. They are nocturnal, remaining asleep during the whole day, or, if disturbed, are not easily roused into a state of activity. They come forth in the evening, and are then more easy and rapid in their movements. Some of these were kept in the Zoological Gardens of London, and it was noticed that they made great use of their tail, which is prehensile, and thus not like that of the Dormouse. They ran about a small tree, using their paws and tail to hang on by, and using the tail as a suspender when they descended. Sometimes the tail is thrown in a reverse direction, and is turned over the back, and at other times, when the weather is cold, it is rolled closely up towards the under part, and coiled up almost between the thighs. They are like little balls of fur, and are very gentle and harmless.

Mr. Gould states that another kind of these Dormouse-looking creatures is very abundant in the northern portion of Van Diemen’s Land, and that of all trees it appears to prefer the Banksia, whose numerous blossoms supply it with a never-ceasing store of food, both of insects and sweets. It undergoes a kind of hibernation somewhat similar to but not to the extent of that of the Dormouse.

These pretty little marsupials are remarkable by having only three true molar teeth in each jaw on both sides; but they have the usual two narrow, long, and pointed incisors in the lower jaw. The auditory bullæ on the base of the skull are large, and the hard palate has four openings in it. The lower jaw is slender behind, and the angular process is inflected, the process of bone being, however, slender and pointed. Their mouse-like shape is evident, but they have a large eye, and the ears are often more or less crumpled and pendent, but they start up and are erect at the least noise. There are three species of these Phalangistidæ, and they are included in a sub-genus, Dromicia. They live in Van Diemen’s Land, Western Australia, and South Australia. Some which were found in King George’s Sound district live in retreats under the dead bark of trees, and in holes in trees which have been burnt out.

THE FLYING PHALANGERS.

The next genus of the family Phalangistidæ contains the Flying Phalangers, which form the genus Petaurus. They have all the peculiarities of the Phalangers, and also a skin on the flank of the body, which is extended between the fore and hind legs, which serves to sustain the animal in the air, when descending from a height. They have a long hairy tail. The Yellow-bellied Flying Phalanger (_Petaurus australis_, Shaw) may be taken as the type of the genus, and is fourteen inches long in the body, and nineteen in the tail. The peculiar fold of fur, which is its flying machine, is attached to the fore leg as far as the elbow, and all down the legs to the great toe. It is common in all the brushes of New South Wales, particularly those along the coast from Port Philip to Moreton Bay. Mr. Gould states, in addition to this, “In these vast forests, trees of one kind or other are perpetually flowering, and thus offer a never-failing supply of blossoms, upon which the animal feeds. The flowers of the gum-trees, some of which are of great magnitude, are the principal favourites, and, like the rest of the genus, it is nocturnal in its habits, dwelling in holes of trees and in the hollows of branches during the day, and displaying the greatest activity at night, while running over the small leafy branches, sometimes even to their very extremities, in search of insects and the honey of the newly-opened blossoms. Its structure being ill-adapted for terrestrial habits, it seldom descends to the ground, except for the purpose of passing to a tree too distant to be attained by springing from the one it wishes to leave. The tops of the trees are traversed at a pace and with as much ease as if it were on the ground. If chased, it ascends to the highest branches, and performs enormous leaps, sweeping from tree to tree with wonderful address.”

A slight elevation gives its body an impetus, which, with the expansion of its membrane, enables it to pass to a considerable distance, always ascending a little at the extremity of the leap. By this ascent the animal is prevented from receiving the shock which it would otherwise sustain.

THE SQUIRREL FLYING PHALANGER.[105]

This little creature, called the Sugar Squirrel by the colonists, is very generally dispersed over the whole of New South Wales, where, in common with other Phalangers, it inhabits the magnificent gum-trees. Mr. Gould states that it is nocturnal in its habits, and that it conceals itself during the day in the hollows of trees, where it early falls a prey to the natives, who capture it both for the sake of its flesh and skin, which latter, in some parts of the colony, they dispose of to the colonists, who occasionally apply it to the same purposes as those to which the fur of the Chinchilla and other animals is applied in Europe. At night it becomes extremely active in its motions. It prefers those forests which adorn the more open and grassy portions of the country rather than the thick brush near the coast. By expanding the membrane attached to the sides of its body it has the power of performing enormous leaps. They have the power of changing their course to a certain extent when descending, parachute-like, from a height. It is stated that a ship sailing off the coast had a Squirrel Petaurus on board which was permitted to roam at large. On one occasion it reached the mast-head, and as the sailor who was sent to bring it down approached, it made a spring from aloft to avoid him. At this moment the ship gave a lurch, which, if the original direction of the little creature’s course had been continued, must have plunged it in the sea. All who witnessed the scene were in pain for its safety; but it suddenly appeared to check itself, and so to modify its career that it alighted safely on deck. This kind is not more than eight or nine inches in length, and its bushy tail is as long as the body. The soft fur of the tail, like that of the body, is a delicate ashy-grey. There is a long stripe of black fur from the naked tip of the nose to the root of the tail, and the cheeks are white with a black patch; the flank membrane is edged with white, and this is the colour of the underneath part of the body; the ears are long, and of a brownish flesh colour.

Another kind, with a yellow flank membrane, is short-headed, and it inhabits Port Essington, North Australia,[106] whilst the true Short-headed Flying Phalanger is found in New South Wales.[107] Probably it is the first of these which is found in New Guinea, and which has been called the Squirrel Flying Phalanger by mistake. These Flying Phalangers all have long and nearly naked ears, and the side membrane extends to the outer finger. They have the outer two fingers of the hand long and equal to each other, or very nearly so; the second and third fingers are distinctly shorter than these; and the inner finger is very short. Their dentition is--Incisors, (6/2); canines, (1-1)/(0-0); premolars, (3-3)/(4-4); true molars, (4-4)/(4-4) = 40. The incisors of the lower jaw are, as usual, long and pointed, and almost horizontal, whilst the upper incisors are large and dilated, so far as the anterior ones are concerned, and the next is smaller than the hindmost. The canine is large, and separated from the first premolar, which is large and compressed, and all the molars have rounded tubercles on them.

The OPOSSUM MOUSE[108] of the colonists of New South Wales used to be common in the neighbourhood of Port Jackson. It is about the size of a common Mouse, and of an ashy brown and grey colour on the upper parts and on the flank membrane; the rest is white. It belongs to the Flying Phalangers, but its side membrane scarcely extends to the wrist, and the thumb of the hind foot is large. It has only three true molars in each jaw on both sides, and the canine is close to the incisors. It forms part of the sub-genus Acrobata, whilst those already mentioned constitute the sub-genus Belideus (βέλος, a dart). Finally, the short-eared, white-bellied Taguan Phalanger of the scrub of New South Wales is the type of the sub-genus _Petaurus_.

GENUS TARSIPES.--THE NOOLBENGER, OR TAIT.[109]

This is an Australian curiosity amongst the Marsupials, and is a small, mouse-like thing, with a long muzzle, small ears, long tongue, and very few teeth. Its dental formula is--Incisors, (2-2)/(2); canines, (1-1)/(0-0); molars, (3-3)/(3-3). The fore and hind extremities have toes something like those of the Lemur, called Tarsius (Vol. I., page 248). The fore feet have five smallish toes, each thickened at the end, and a minute scale-like nail, which reaches neither the end nor sides of the toe. The hind feet have five toes on each, and the innermost has the formation of a thumb, and is slender and nailless. The second and third toes are very short, and are joined to the end and furnished with small pointed nails, which are directed upwards almost at right angles to the plane of the toe; and the fourth toe is twice as long as the second and third. The fifth is shorter than the fourth, and has a scale-like nail on the upper surface. This is the case with the fourth also. There is a long, slender tail. The small bones of this little honey-sucker are very thin, and the lower jaw has two slender and almost straight sides, and the inflection is wanting.

This little animal is rare, but it is to be found in West Australia, from Swan River to King George’s Sound. It is nocturnal in its habits, and catches flies in captivity with great ease. But its food is honey, which it gets like a moth, with its tongue. The tail is prehensile, and the little pouch contains four mammæ in the female.

The little Tarsipes, with its honey and insect diet, has a very long intestine and no cæcum, whilst the Koala has a cæcum more than three times the length of its body. The pigmy Acrobata has this organ disposed in a spiral curve in the left lumbar region. The marsupial bones are large in the Koala, and are long, broad, and flat, almost equalling the iliac bone in size. Finally, with regard to the parachute-fold of skin on the flanks of the Petaurists, it is a simple fold with very elastic tissues within, which draw it up to the body, more or less, when the animal is walking or standing. When, however, the limbs are extended after a jump, the membrane becomes very tense, and acts by increasing the surface of the body so as to oppose gravitation by the supporting power of the air.

IV.--FAMILY PERAMELIDÆ.--POUCHED BADGERS.

This group of Marsupials embraces two genera, Perameles and Chœropus, the first having several species and the last but one. They have all long, slender heads; large, long ears, with fleshy lobes; longer hind than fore limbs; the tail short in some, long in others, and hairy; and the pouch is directed backwards. They have a considerable number of teeth, there being ten incisors in the upper jaw and six in the lower; there are two canines in each jaw, three premolars in each jaw on either side, and four true molars behind them, making forty-eight teeth in all. The teeth have fangs, the premolars are compressed and pointed, and the molars have tubercles on them. The stomach is simple.

GENUS PERAMELES (BANDICOOTS).--THE RABBIT-EARED PERAMELES.[110]

The so-called native Rabbit of the Swan River district of Western Australia is abundant in the grassy country in the interior; and it frequents, in pairs, places where the soil will permit of burrowing. It is about the size of a common Rabbit, and has a long and pointed muzzle, which is naked at the tip. It has long, oval ears, which are tubular at the base. The eye is small, and the tail is a little shorter than the body. The legs are longish, and the fur is well grown.

This sharp-looking animal lives upon insects, and its favourite food is a large grub, probably the larvæ of a species of Buprestis beetle which infest the roots of the acacia trees. In order to obtain this peculiar food, it has to compete with the natives, who like it also, and often enough it has to rush to its long and deep burrows for safety. Its flesh is sweet, and is much sought after by the aborigines. One which was kept at the Zoological Gardens was very active in the evening, but usually slept during the day-time, when, sitting upon its haunches, with its head thrust between its hind legs, it appeared like a ball of fur. It was a very savage animal, and bit severely, holding on, moreover, if it could, with its teeth. It waddled on its hind legs alone, which were straddled, and the tail assisted in supporting the body. They have five toes to the fore-foot, of which the two outermost are rudimentary and nailless, the remaining three are well developed, and are furnished with strong solid nails, which cover the last phalanges which are cleft above in the longitudinal direction almost to the root. The hind feet have a rudimentary inner toe, the second and third are joined and are slender, and have two hollow nails, and the fourth is large and, like the fifth, which is well developed, has a solid nail sheathed on the end bone.

GUNN’S PERAMELES.--THE BANDICOOT.[111]

This is the animal which has given the native name to the genus, and Mr. Gunn, who discovered the species, informed Mr. Waterhouse that it is common in many parts of Van Diemen’s Land, going by the name of Bandicoot. It is a burrower, and lives principally upon roots, and it likes the bulbs which are introduced from the Cape and elsewhere into gardens. It is about sixteen inches long, and has a slender muzzle, moderate-sized ears, and the under parts of the body are white, the rest being grey and pencilled with black and yellow, except behind, where it is blacker. There are four broadish white bands on this part.

THE BANDED PERAMELES.[112]

This is a pretty little Perameles with a body about a foot in length, and a tail of about four inches long. It has rather a sharp and long snout, rather large ears, which are broad at the base, and long and pointed at the tip. The fur is longish and harsh, and is pencilled with black and yellow in about equal proportions on the upper part of the body, there being a black ground colour on the hinder part of the back. There, however, there are three broad yellow-white bands, the foremost of which crosses the back. The feet and under parts are white, and the tail is of the same colour underneath, but black on the top. The feet are slender, and the hind ones have a rudimentary inner toe, naked beneath, in front, and at the heel. In the skeleton this inner toe has one or two phalanges, and a small tubercle without a nail is visible before the flesh is removed. It inhabits Southern Australia from east to west. This kind resembles the Bandicoot of Van Diemen’s Land on the other side of Bass Strait, and may be considered its representative. It is smaller than the Van Diemen’s Land species, but its tail is longer; moreover, the ear exceeds those of the insular forms in size. Like the other Perameles, the pouch for the young opens backwards. “Though provided with strong claws it rarely burrows,” says Mr. Krefft, “and it is a great enemy to little Rodents. It tumbles the Mice about with its fore paws, breaks their hind legs, and eats the head.” New Guinea contains a short-legged Perameles,[113] which appears to be deficient in the usual number of upper incisor teeth; and another[114] resembling the common Bandicoot.

GENUS CHŒROPUS.--THE PIG-FOOTED PERAMELES.[115]

A very rare little, large-eared, small-legged animal was found by Sir Thomas Mitchell on the banks of the River Murray, and its appearance was so remarkable that much attention was paid to its anatomy, whilst unfortunately nothing particular was learned regarding its natural history and habits. Subsequently the little creature, whose body is about nine inches and a half long, the tail measuring in addition about four inches, was found in the interior of the country near the Swan River. It is an active little animal, and a hunter of insects, but it will feed upon vegetable substances also. Mr. Gould states that, like the Perameles, to which it is allied in many parts of its construction, it forms a nest composed of leaves and other substances. The pouch is deep and runs upwards, and not like that of the Kangaroo, and there are eight teats. At first there was much discussion whether the animal had a tail, but there is no doubt about its possessing one when in the perfect condition. The slender fore limbs, no thicker than goose-quills, end in two very small digits, and they are provided with small, compressed, and but little curved nails. They have a small fleshy pad on their under surface, behind which is a smaller one. The hind legs are longer than the front ones, and are almost as slender. The foot is long, and at first sight appears to have only one large toe, for the others are very small and far removed from the end of the foot. The outer little toe has a small nail, and the inner toes, joined, are almost as small, but they have hollow nails. The greatly-developed toe has a conical and compressed nail, but beneath there is a large fleshy pad; the rest of the foot is hairy. Hence it appears that the heel is not put to the ground. The colour of the long, loose, soft fur is brown-grey above, and yellowish-white beneath, the limbs and the fore feet have a whitish tint, and the large toe is of a dirty white colour. So far as the skull and teeth are concerned, the little Chœropus greatly resembles the other kinds of Marsupials which are classified under the genus Perameles. Sir Thomas Mitchell noticed the broad head and very slender snout, which, he stated, resembled the narrow neck of a wide bottle, in the specimen which the natives took from a hollow tree after chasing it on the ground. In the construction of the skull and in the number of the teeth, this long-eared creature resembles the rest of the genus Perameles. In the upper jaw there are five incisor teeth on each side, and they are close, and the canine is small, and resembles a premolar, and is slightly distant from the incisors. The first premolar is separated from the canine by a space of one line and a half, and slightly from the second premolar; and the second and third premolars and the four molars form a continuous line.

V.--THE DASYURUS FAMILY.--DASYURIDÆ.

These animals are all carnivorous, and prey upon small quadrupeds and the young of large ones, as well as upon birds and insects. They are of different shapes and sizes, according to the genera to which they may belong; and whilst some resemble the Shrew Mice somewhat in outward appearance, others are like the Marten, and one important group may be compared with Short-legged Wolves, or Jackals. Varying in size from that of a Mouse to a small Wolf, the members of the different genera of this family are equally variable in the number of the teeth, of the claws, and in the development of the marsupial pouch and its bones. They all have rather long muzzles and furry tails, which, however, are not prehensile. The second and third toes of the hind feet are disunited and well developed, and the thumb-toe is small or absent. There are eight incisors in the upper jaw, and six in the lower.

GENUS MYRMECOBIUS.--THE POUCHED ANT-EATERS.[116]

The BANDED MYRMECOBIUS may be taken as an example of this genus. It is about the size of a Rat, but it is more Squirrel-like in shape, and has a long and pointed muzzle. The tail is long and furry, with long hairs also; and the prevailing colour of the body is reddish, but posteriorly it becomes dark or black. There are nine bands of light or white colour on the sides of the body, from the back over the flanks, and the crupper is also marked with a band. The head is long, the ears are moderately long, narrow, and pointed, the gape is considerable, and the small pointed snout has some rather long smellers; there are also some long hairs under the eye. A black mark runs on the cheek to the ear, and has white hairs above and below it. The fur is somewhat remarkable. The under hair is scanty and whitish-grey, and the upper hair is rather coarse, short, and depressed on the fore parts of the body. It is long on the hind and under parts, and the hairs on the fore part of the back are black near the skin and reddish at the tip. The fur of the head is short and brownish above, being composed of a mixture of black, fulvous, and a few white hairs. The fore legs are rather stout and strongly made, and the five curved and compressed claws are admirably adapted for its method of life, which consists of insect-hunting by digging. The hind limbs are suited to support the weight of the animal, as it scratches with the fore feet, but they are deficient in the first toes. The whole animal is about seventeen inches long, seven inches being included in the tail. This animal has a greater number of teeth than any other Marsupial, and, indeed, they are only surpassed by some Cetacea and Edentate Ant-eaters amongst the other Mammalia. There are fifty-two teeth in the mouth--namely, eight upper and six lower incisors, four canines, six compressed false molars behind the canines above and below, and ten small true molars above, and twelve below. The canines of the lower jaw are incurved, and the last lower molars are worn in ridges internally. The number of teeth appears, however, to be variable, and some have fifty-four and others less than fifty.

The Myrmecobius, although it has the inflected condition of the lower jawbone and small marsupial bones, not more than half an inch in length, has no pouch. The young adhere to the mother’s nipples, and are protected by the comfortable fur and long hair of her body.

The Banded Myrmecobius was first discovered by Lieutenant Dale, who procured a specimen whilst on an exploring expedition into the interior of the Swan River Settlement, about ninety miles to the south-east of the mouth of the river. Two specimens of this very elegant little animal were seen by Lieutenant Dale, both of which fled to hollow trees for shelter upon being pursued. The district in which they were found abounded in decayed trees and ant-hills; and, from some peculiarities in the dentition of the animal, combined with its extremely long and slender tongue, it became evident that its food was insects, and the softer and smaller species, for procuring which, by scratching up the earth, the strong fore feet and claws appeared to be adapted. Indeed, the peculiarities of structure, combined with the fact that the animal was found in the vicinity of ant-hills, suggested that its food, in all probability, consisted chiefly of Ants: and hence the generic name. As yet, however, we have no direct evidence that Ants form the chief food of the Myrmecobius, though it is stated, in Mr. Gould’s “Mammals of Australia,” that wherever this animal takes up its abode, there Ants are found to be very abundant. In the same work the following particulars of the habits of the animal are given from the pen of Mr. Gilbert:--

“I have seen a good deal of this little animal. It appears very much like a Squirrel when running on the ground, which it does in successive leaps, with its tail a little elevated, every now and then raising its body and resting on its hind feet. When alarmed, it generally takes to a dead tree lying on the ground, and before entering the hollow, invariably raises itself on its hind feet to ascertain the reality of approaching danger. In this kind of retreat it is easily captured; and when caught, is so harmless and tame as scarcely to make any resistance, and never attempts to bite. When it has no chance of escaping from its place of refuge, it utters a sort of half-smothered grunt, apparently produced by a succession of hard breathings.

“The female is said to bring forth her young in a hole in the ground or in a fallen tree, and to produce from five to nine in a litter. I have not myself observed more than seven young attached to the nipples.” It is not nocturnal in its habits.

With regard to the range of the genus Myrmecobius, Mr. Gould states that it is very generally dispersed over the interior of the Swan River Settlement, from King George’s Sound on the south to the neighbourhood of Moor’s River on the north, and as far westward as civilised man has yet been able to penetrate. Its species are also found near the Murray and Darling.

This many-toothed Ant-eating Marsupial has always been interesting to geologists, for in the Stonesfield slates of the Oolitic formation of England, which lie low down in the Great Oolite, the lower jaws of an animal have been found greatly resembling those of Myrmecobius. The fossil Amphitherium has the jaws but slightly inflected, and is not without resemblance to insectivorous creatures; but, nevertheless, its similarity to Myrmecobius struck Owen and Lyell many years since.

GENUS DASYURUS.--THE URSINE DASYURE.[117]

Being a great enemy of the poultry and tender rearlings of the colonists of Van Diemen’s Land, this small creature has earned the name of the “Native Devil.” It may be compared to a Bear, with a body about two feet in length, and the resemblance is tolerably correct in the fur, general proportions of the body and limbs, and also in its gait and its actions. The Dasyure, however, has a longer tail than the Bear, and never grows larger than a Badger. It is a short animal, with a round broad head and rather a long snout, and the coarse black fur (brown-black on the head, tail, and beneath) is marked by one broad white band across the chest and by another over the back, close to the tail. The tail is about half the length of the head and trunk. Harris notices that these animals were very common on the British first settling at Hobart Town, and were particularly destructive to poultry, and Mr. Gunn states that they commit great havoc among Sheep, and that notwithstanding their comparatively small size, they are so fierce that they are a match for any ordinary Dog.

As the settlements increased in Tasmania, and the ground became cleared, the animals were driven from their haunts near the town to the deeper recesses of the forests yet unexplored. They were easily procured by setting a trap in the most unfrequented parts of the woods, baited with raw flesh, all kinds of which they will eat indiscriminately and voraciously. They also, it is probable, prey on dead fish and blubber, as their tracks are frequently found on the sands of the sea-shore. In a state of confinement they appear to be untamably savage, biting severely, and uttering at the same time a low yelling growl. A male and female which Mr. Harris kept for a couple of months, chained together in an empty cask, were continually fighting. Their quarrels began as soon as it was dark, as they slept all day, and continued throughout the night almost without intermission, accompanied by a kind of hollow barking, not unlike that of a Dog, and sometimes a sudden kind of snorting, as if the breath were restrained a considerable time and then suddenly expelled. They frequently sat on their hind parts, and used their fore paws to convey food to their mouths. The muscles of the jaws were strong, and they crushed the largest bones asunder with ease.

This Dasyure, like the others of the genus, has the incisor teeth equal, and there are eight of them in the upper jaw and six in the lower. The four canines are large, and there are two powerful premolars in each jaw and on each side. These are succeeded by four molars above and below, and on both sides of the mouth.

The incisor teeth, equal in size, are arranged in a semicircle in the upper jaw, and those of the lower jaw have a corresponding direction, but they are rather the stouter. The canines are well developed, and those of the lower jaw bite in front of those of the upper. They look eminently adapted for stopping and seizing prey, and their carnivorous character is surpassed by that of the premolars and true molars. These last have a triangular grinding surface: the first has four sharp cusps, the second and third have five, and the last, which is the smallest in the upper jaw, has only three. In the lower jaw the last molar is of the same size as the last but one, and has four cusps; and the other molars have much resemblance to those in the upper jaw.

The hind feet have the toes separate and not united by a fold of skin, and there is a rudimentary great toe in this species. The condyle of the humerus is not perforated--as in the Kangaroos, for instance--for the passage of the blood vessels, but is whole, and the outside of the bone is marked by a groove, along which they pass.

Although this Dasyure has the lower jaw inflected, and is a true Marsupial, the resemblance in shape, and in dental and other characters, as well as in its habits, to the Carnivora is striking. Its fierce character and the nocturnal habits add to the similarity; but there are some very peculiar anatomical distinctions. The wrist bones, called scaphoid and lunar, those which are nearest the radius along the first row of carpal bones, are separate in the Dasyure, but in the Carnivora they are united to form one bone. And in the foot there is a peculiarity: for whilst in the Carnivora there is a groove between the heel bone and the astragalus, this is absent in the Marsupial Carnivore, and the articular surface of the bones is continuous.

The Dasyures have a small crest of bone on the top of the skull, which is also seen on a grander scale in the Carnivora. They have, moreover, the zygoma well developed and strong; it bulges outwards and curves upwards, but not to the amount seen in the true Carnivora. The occipital bone is developed as in the non-Marsupial mammals, but its parts, instead of joining together and forming one with age, often remain separate; but this does not appear to occur in all the species of the genus, for Owen, in his wonderful article on the Marsupials in the “Cyclopædia of Anatomy and Physiology,” notices that in the little _Dasyurus Maugei_ the occipital bone presents the usual state of bony confluence. He notices that the Dasyure, in common with some other Marsupials, has the temporal bone permanently divided into its several parts, there being separate squamous, petrous, and tympanic bones; but the petrous and mastoid parts are usually united. This is a reptilian peculiarity, but the tympanic bone of the Dasyure is not without its resemblances to those of birds. The surface on which the lower jaw moves or is hinged, is not composed entirely by the temporal bone, but the malar bone is slightly included, and even the sphenoid comes into the joint.

Another marked character of the Dasyures is, that their hard palates are not whole, but have spaces and perforations, and this denotes a low organisation. This absence of a perfect hard palate is seen in other Marsupials, and especially in the Bandicoots (Perameles).

The angular process of the lower jaw, where inflected or bent in, is triangular and directed upwards, with a blunt point; and the condyle of the jaw is low, being on a level with the molar teeth.

It is remarkable that the Dasyures should have the bones of the leg, the tibia and fibula, so connected together as to allow of a certain degree of rotation on each other, after the fashion of the fore-arm bones. The muscles of the leg are modified for the purpose. This interesting anatomical point recalls one of the great distinctions between the fixed leg bones of man and those of the hand-footed Ape. It is not found, however, in the non-Marsupial mammals, whose habits of life are simulated by the Dasyure; but it is found in the Wombat, a burrower, and in the Koala, Phalangers, and Opossums, which are climbers. In examining the stomachs of the Marsupials, Owen noticed that differences in food and habit are not met by alteration in the shape of the organ, as they are in the higher Mammalia. Thus, the common Dasyure, the insectivorous Bandicoot, and the leaf-eating Phalangers, have a full round, oval, or sub-triangular-shaped stomach, with the right extremity projecting beyond and below the pylorus. The length of the stomach seldom exceeds the height by more than one-third. No cæcum is found in the carnivorous Marsupial, and the intestine is short and wide, being continued, like the intestine of a reptile, along the margin of a single and simple mesentery, from the pylorus to the rectum (Owen). The liver has a gall-bladder in the Dasyure, and there is a pancreas as well as a spleen. The heart is contained in a slight pericardium, as in the other Mammalia. The Ursine Dasyure is found in Van Diemen’s Land only.

There are several kinds of Dasyure, which have been carefully noticed and described. One is called the Long-tailed or Spotted Dasyure,[118] and is about the size of a Cat. The fur is reddish-brown, pencilled with yellow, and is spotted with white both on the body and on the tail. It has a tail as long as the head and body together, and the under parts of the body and the fore-legs and feet are of a dirty yellow tinge. It lives in Van Diemen’s Land, and was, from its shape, at first called a Marten. The teats are six in number, three on each side, and seated within a slight fold only of the skin, so that there is no true pouch.

MAUGE’S DASYURE.[119]

This is a small animal, not larger than a half-grown Cat. It has a longish bushy tail, a broad head, and is somewhat of greyish-yellow colour. There are white spots on the sides of the body and tail. In confinement this little creature is torpid by day, but lively as evening comes on, and it rushes about, with its tail extended, with great rapidity. It is very injurious to the poultry when in a wild state, and is called the Wild Cat in Van Diemen’s Land. A variety of it is the Viverrine Dasyure, which has the head and body spotted with white, the general colour being brown, black, or grey, tinted with yellow, the under parts being white. It has long hairs to its tail; rather large ears, the flesh of which is of a pale pink, as is that of the naked lips, the tip of the nose, and the soles of the feet, the latter being hairless, but covered with small fleshy tubercles. There is no trace of an inner toe to the hind foot, unless it be a slight swelling of the flesh, marking the situation of the rudimentary bone beneath. Both of these animals are to be found in New South Wales and Van Diemen’s Land.

The rest of the Dasyures are widely spread over the continent. The smallest kind is the North Australian Dasyure. Geoffroy’s Dasyure, which has a thin tail and an inner toe to the hind foot, inhabits Western and Southern Australia and New South Wales, is a great killer of the Yellow-crested Cockatoo, and they hunt and kill Mice or Rats as well as any Cat. They have not a pouch.

GENUS THYLACINUS.[120]--THE DOG-HEADED THYLACINUS.[121]

This is a Dog-like, slim, narrow-muzzled animal, with clean and rather short limbs, a foxy head, and a tail about half as long as the body, which in males is forty-five inches in length. It is about the size of a Jackal, and the fur is short, but rather woolly and greyish-brown, faintly suffused with yellow in colour. The fur on the back is deep brown near the skin, and yellowish-brown towards the tip. It has from twelve to fourteen black bands on the body, and the tail has long hairs at the tip only. The eyes are keen, large, and full, and they are black and have a nictitating membrane. The animal walks half on its toes and half on its soles or palms, and thus is a semi-plantigrade, the body being brought nearer the ground than that of the Wolf in running. There is a marsupial pouch, but the bones are mere cartilages. The Dog-headed Thylacinus, or the Zebra-Wolf of the colonists of Van Diemen’s Land, thus described, has often been taken for one of the Carnivora, and certainly there are great resemblances between it and the Dogs. The canine teeth are of large size, but they are recurved at the top, and in the upper jaw are separated from the incisors by a space, into which the point of the lower canine fits when the jaws are closed. This is different in the Dogs, whose lower canine passes on the outer side of the upper one when the mouth is closed. The premolar of the Thylacinus has a small cusp behind, but in the lower jaw the premolars are isolated, and do not form a continuous cutting and masticating ridge. It is also to be remembered that this animal has a peculiar lower jaw, as it is one of the Marsupials, and the angle is inflected. It is a Marsupial, with some structures which foreshadow those of the more highly-developed Dog.

Mr. Harris, who was the first to make this animal known, states that it lives among caverns and rocks, in the deep and almost impenetrable glens, in the neighbourhood of the highest mountains of Van Diemen’s Land. The specimen from which his description was taken was caught in a trap baited with Kangaroo’s flesh; it remained alive but a few hours, having received some internal hurt whilst being secured. From time to time it uttered a short guttural cry, and it appeared exceedingly inactive and stupid, and, like the Owl, had an almost continual motion of the nictitant membrane of the eye. Remains of an Echidna were found in the stomach of the animal. Waterhouse states, on the authority of Mr. Gunn, that these animals are common only in the remoter parts of the colony, and used to be frequently caught at Woolnooth and the Hampshire Hills. They attack the Sheep at night, but are occasionally seen during the daytime, upon which occasions, perhaps from imperfect vision, their pace is very slow. Mr. Gunn also observes that the Thylacinus sometimes attains so large and formidable a size, that a number of Dogs will not face it. That gentleman denies that the tail of the animal is compressed, as has been stated by some authors, and his observations do not confirm the aquatic habits which have been attributed to it. There are cartilages in the place of the marsupial bones; but the pouch is well developed in the female Thylacine, and there are four well developed teats, each four inches long, indicating that it may contain four young ones at a time. The marsupium, or pouch, opens backwards, not, as in the Kangaroos and most others, forwards.

GENUS PHASCOGALE (POUCHED WEASELS).--THE BRUSH-TAILED PHASCOGALE.[122]

This genus includes many species of small Weasel-or Rat-like Marsupials. They are small, insectivorous, and climb shrubs and trees in pursuit of their prey. The largest known is about the size of a common Rat. The brush-tailed kind inhabits New South Wales, South Australia, and Western Australia, and is a pretty little animal, having a long and soft fur, of a grey colour above and white or yellow-white under the body. The eyes are encircled with black, and there is a pale spot above and below the eye, and the hairs are blackest along the middle of the head. The ear is rather large and not furry; the tail is about equal to the body in length, or seven inches to nine inches, and there is a portion near its end of about two inches in length, which is clothed with short, stiff hairs, and the rest has long and glossy hairs, sometimes an inch or two long. An insectivorous little creature, its teeth are modified to meet its diet, and they are less carnivorous than the other Dasyurids. They have the two foremost incisors of the upper and lower jaw larger than the others. There are three premolars in each jaw on each side, and eight molars above and below, which are studded with prickly tubercles, those of the upper jaw having triangular crowns. There are five toes to the fore and hinder extremities, and the inner toe of the latter is in the form of a small nailless prehensile thumb. The brain-case is large and the skull comparatively smooth. The species just noticed is said to enter the stores of the settlers, and it makes a nest in the hollows of the trunks of trees or in the branches. The female has no pouch, but ten teats covered with hair. It is the Tapoa Tafa of White, according to Krefft.

Another species, about six inches long, not including a tail of three inches--the Freckled Phascogale--lives in the Swan River district and at King George’s Sound, being generally distributed over Western Australia. It has the fur freckled with black and white on the head and fore parts of the body. Mr. Gilbert found insect remains in its stomach, and he obtained a female specimen having seven young attached. They were little more than half an inch in length, and quite blind and naked. Above the teats of the mother is a very small fold of skin, from which the long hairs of the under surface spread downwards, and effectually cover and protect the young. This fold is the only approximation to a pouch which has been found in any species of this genus. The young are very tenacious of life, and those just mentioned lived nearly two days attached to the mammæ of the dead mother.

The Yellow-footed Phascogale is a kind which inhabits New South Wales and South Australia, and the White-footed Phascogale and a closely-allied kind live in South Australia and Van Diemen’s Land. In New Guinea, which constitutes a part of the Australian natural history province, there is a black, short-eared, and short-furred kind, about the size of a Rat, called _Phascogale melas_.

There is a little kind, measuring only three inches in length, with white fur everywhere, except on the upper parts, which are ashy grey; and in Western and Southern Australia there is one which has great ears, very slender limbs, and a short and thick fat tail. It looks like a large-eared, fat-tailed Mouse, and is under four inches in length. All these kinds of Phascogale, except the brush-tailed one, belong to a group with very short hairs on the tail, and are sometimes classified under the name Antechinus, the thick-tailed one being termed Podabrus; and they all have shallow pouches.