and Fish from Van Diemen's Land. 107 



distinguished from them. The whole number in both jaws 

 amount to twenty-four." It is evident from his whole number 

 that the cutting-teeth should have been two and not five, as 

 they are in the wombat described by Geoffroy. Illiger, (Pro- 

 dromus, 7 7 J overlooking this misprint, and being aware that 

 no known Mammalia have an odd number of cutting-teeth, de- 

 scribes his genus Amblotis as having six teeth in each jaw. 

 Succeeding naturalists have been inclined to believe that 

 Illiger and Bass's animal is to be discovered. I have seen 

 Bass's specimen, which is now in the Museum of the Natural 

 History Society of Newcastle-on-Tyne : it is the same as the 

 one we now usually receive from Van Diemen's Land, only 

 discoloured by having been kept in spirit. 



It is to be regretted that no specimen of No. 2 was sent, as 

 there are two different species confounded under the name of 

 P. Cookii, one coming from Van Diemen's Land, which must 

 be called the real P. Cookii, as it is the opossum of Van Die- 

 men's Land described by Cook, last Voyage, i. 108, t. 1 ; 

 from this arises the Phalanger de Cook, Cuv. Reg. Anim., 

 i. 179 ; Phalangista Cookii, Temm. Monog., i. f. The other, 

 which was found near the Endeavour River, New Hol- 

 land, may be called Phalangista Banksii ; it is the New Hol- 

 land opossum of Pennant (Quad., ii. 25.), the Opossum of 

 Hawkesby, Voy.,ii. 586, and probably the Balantia Cookii of 

 Kuhl. (Beitr. 63.) Capt. Cook thought that the Van Diemen's 

 Land animal might be the male of the one discovered by Sir 

 J. Banks in New Holland. Dr. Shaw, in his white-tailed opos- 

 sum, has partly combined Pennant and Cook's descriptions. 

 Cuvier refers to Cook's plate ; and Temminck says that he de- 

 scribed a specimen brought home in Capt. Cook's expedition 

 which is now in the Leyden Museum. 



9. Phalangista fuliginosa, Ogilby ? Back and tail black ; 

 sides brownish ; throat, chest, and belly yellowish brown 5 

 under side of the tip of the tail bald. 



6. Perameles Gunnii, Gray. Muzzle elongate, conical, ta- 

 pering, grey-brown, with scattered black tipped rigid flattened 

 bristles ; lips, throat, belly, inside of the legs, feet, tail, and 

 four broad bands on each side of the rump white ; front claws 

 elongate, slightly arched, yellow j ears moderate, rather naked, 



