46 FEMALE UROGENITAL ORGANS OF PERAMELES, 



The broad ligament after being joined by the above-mentioned 

 free fold forming the roof of the dorsal uterine fossa, passes almost 

 A'ertically upwards to become continuous dorsally with the 

 pai'ietal peritoneum. A duplication of it, however, forming the 

 utero-pelvic fold of the broad ligament (Plate i., fig. 1, ut.j)./.) 

 passes outwards and slightly forwards to join the parietal perito- 

 neum dorso-laterally. The posterior free margin of this utero- 

 pelvic fold is traversed by a well-detined thick band of a white 

 colour— the round ligament of the uterus (fig. 1, rd. lig.). This 

 contains smooth muscle fibres and fibrous tissue, and takes its 

 origin from the lateral aspect of the anterior end of each uterus, 

 shortly behind the junction of the Fallopian tube with the latter. 

 It runs obliquely outwards, and on reaching the body wall bends 

 back towards the region of the epigastric artery, where it is 

 apparently lost. The round ligament ma}' reach a length in 

 Perameles of 2 "3 cm., and a breadth of 1*5 mm. In Macropus, I 

 find the round ligament is proportionately much smaller and much 

 less conspicuous than it is in Perameles. 



So far as I am aware the x'ound ligament of the uterus has not 

 previously been descril:)ed in any Marsupial. In the Descriptive 

 Catalogue of the Royal College of Surgeons' Museum (6), under 

 the description of preparation 2740 (female organs of Kangaroo, 

 M. major), occurs the following statement (p. 156) : '• the round 

 or ovarian ligament may be seen extending from the ovary to the 

 side of the uterus, upon which it is lost." But the true round 

 ligament extends from the uterus, not from the ovary, and both 

 in Perameles and in J/, major is quite distinct from the proper 

 ovarian ligament, even though situated almost directly under the 

 latter. 



Posteriorly the broad ligament extends back on each side, over 

 the base of the vaginal csecum, to be continued as a peritoneal 

 fold reflected from each side of the urogenital strand to the pelvic 

 wall. This urogenital fold extends back, of course, only as far 

 the posterior end of the pouch of Douglas. 



The bladder is connected with the ventral abdominal wall by a 

 median fold, which extends almost up to its apex. Brass (4) 



