SPECIES OF MAMMALS OF THE PACIFIC AREA 31 



Fig. 14 — Wombat 



Their range includes only Australia and Tasmania; in many 

 parts of the former, wombats are now extinct. 



Kangaroos and Wallabies. Family Macropodid^ 



The kangaroo family is marked by the long hind feet adapted 

 for two-legged hopping and leaping, the long stout tail gen- 

 erally used as a prop, single lower incisor tooth separated by a 

 considerable space from the cheek-teeth. Pouches open for- 

 ward, and a single young one or "joey" is as a rule nursed at a 

 time. Almost all are plant-eaters. 



The largest kangaroos belong to the genus Macropus. Many 

 of the species are becoming rare. The visitor to Australia will 

 probably see only some of the many kinds of medium-sized or 

 small species, collectively termed wallabies. 



The Red and Gray Kangaroos. (Macropus rufa and M. 

 major) are the two best known of the large kangaroos. The 

 red kangaroos commonly show a grayish or "blue" phase, thus 

 somewhat resembling the true gray kangaroo, but may be dis- 

 tinguished by the strongly defined black whisker-mark on each 

 side of the nostrils, which is edged beneath with white. The red 



