SMITHOPSIS. 9 



blance being so close as to suggest that Myrmecobius, like Ceratodus, 

 is actually an unmodified survivor from Mesozoic times. 



Subfamily II. DASYURINJE. 



Tongue short, simple, not extensile. Lower lip rounded, not 

 produced. Chest without gland. Molars large, four in number 

 in each rauius ; those of the lower jaw with the outer cusps larger 

 than the inner. 



Genus II. ANTECAINOMYS, Krefft (1866). 



Body unspotted. Ears very large. Tail very long, tufted. 

 Limbs unusually elongated ; the fore-arm, lower leg, and hind 

 foot disproportionately long. Toes short and subequal ; hallux 

 absent. Palms and soles without distinct pads, the greater part 

 of the latter hairy. Mammas? Canines very small. 



n ... T 1.2.3.4 n 1 -p 1.0.3.4 -,.- 1.2.3.4 o AK 



Dentition. 1. j^-g-, C. ^ P. j-^-^ M. j-^ x 2 = 4b. 

 Habits. Terrestrial ; saltatory ; insectivorous, 



1. ANTECHINOMYS LANIGER, Gould, sp. (1856). 

 "Woolly Pouched Mouse; Jerboa Pouched Mouse. 



Size small ; form slender and graceful. Fur long, soft, and fine. 

 General color above slaty gray ; below white ; a fawn-colored 

 patch behind the ear. Ears ovoid, almost entirely clothed with 

 short, fawn-colored hairs. Lower part of limbs, hands, and feet 

 white. Tail very long, slender, short-haired, fawn-colored except 

 the terminal inch which is tufted and black. 



Dimensions. Head and body about three and a half inches ; 

 tail about five inches. 



Habitat. Interior of New South Wales and Southern Queens- 

 land. 



References. Thomas, B. M. Catal. p. 309, pis. xxiii. fig. 9 (sole), 

 xxv. figs. 11 & 12 (skull); Gould, Mamm. Austr. i. pi. xx.xiii.; 

 Alston, P.Z.S. 1880, p. 545, pi. xlv. 



Note. Through want of information respecting its habits, 

 Gould's figure represents a pair seated on the bough of a tree ; 

 the figures also are very misleading. 



Genus III. SMINTHOPSIS, Thomas (1887). 



Body unspotted. Form slender and delicate. Ears large and 

 broad. Tail moderate or short, short-haired, sometimes incras- 

 sated. Feet slender and delicate. Toes subequal, with small, 

 delicate claws ; hallux present, short and clawless. Soles partially 



