32 THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE LINNEAN SOCIETY 



Echidna (Tacliyglossus*) nov. sp.f 



Male. — The head, throat, fore and hind legs, tail, and all the 

 under surface, is covered scantily with stiff flattish bristles of a 

 brown tint, longest on the sides of the abdomen, sides of the body 

 and crown of the head, where they gradually merge into short 

 spines of a whitish horn color, covering the sides of the neck and 

 ears ; a curled patch of blackish hair round the ears, overlapped, 

 by the spines in front ; all the upper parts of the body except the 

 head, is covered with long cylindrical spines, some altogether 

 white, some all black, others parti-colored, with white or black 

 tips, and a few black hairs scattered through the spines and on 

 the sides of the body. The white spines appear to predominate 

 on the nape of the neck and rump, and are longest on the sides 

 of the body and near the dorsal line. The fore limbs are short, 

 stout, and strong, flattened anteriorly, the hind limbs somewhat 

 slender, the second toe nail very long, strong, curved, and hol- 

 lowed below ; the spur on the heel small, sharp, and of a light 

 horn color. The snout is bare to within 0*3 of an inch from the 

 eye, and of a purple brown color ; length of bare portion, 2 

 inches ; the skin of the under surface where visible is of a dull 

 reddish brown. 



Total length from the tip of snout to tip of tail, 13 4 inches ; 

 total length from the tip of snout to hind claw, 15 inches ; fore 

 limb, hand, and wrist to tip of longest nail, 2 inches ; hind foot 

 and claws from heel, 1*3 inches ; hind leg, 3 "5 inches ; from the 

 heel-spar to end of second toe, without nail, 1*5 inches ; from the 

 tip of snout to ear opening, 4*5 inches (shin stretched?); from tip 

 of snout to angle of mouth, 05 inch ; from the tip of lower jaw 

 to angle of mouth, 0'45 inch ; width of opening, 03 inch ; width 

 of snout, 0"5 inch ; distance between the eyes, 1'4 inches ; across 

 the snout at lateral groove, 0*65 inch ; across the base of skull, 



*" II nome generico di Tachyglossxis, Illiger 1811, deve, essere usato invece di Echidna 

 Cuvier 1797, perch6 Forster fino dal 1778 lo aveva adoperato per denominare un gruppo 

 di Murenidi." W. Peters e G. Doria, Descrizione di una nuova sp. di Tachyglossxis 

 vroveniente dalla Nuova Guinea settentrionale. 



t I have not yet learned the name which has heen given to this new species, but daily 

 expect to hear of it from my friends in England. Should it, however, still be unnamed, I 

 propose for it the name of T. Lawesii, in honor of its discoverer. 



