SPECIES OF MAMMALS OF THE PACIFIC AEEA 25 



be used to insert into worm-holes or bees' nests in trees to dis- 

 lodge insect food. 



Mouse Possums, Pygmy Possums, Dormouse Phalangers 



(Eudromicia and allies) are tiny, mouse-like possums with 

 long, nearly bare, prehensile tails. The color is some shade of 

 brown, with underparts white. The over-all length is eight to 

 ten inches ; tail about five inches. These little animals are noc- 

 turnal, feeding on insects and fruit. Several species are known 

 in Australia but only one in New Guinea. 



The Feather-tailed Mouse Possum (Distoechurus), found 

 only in New Guinea, is a rare animal, nearly equal in size but 

 not closely related to Eudromicia. The tail is fringed with a 

 row of long hairs on each side which give it a feather-like ap- 

 pearance. 



The Cuscuses (Phalanger) are slow-moving, tree-living, 

 prehensile-tailed, monkey-like marsupials, with small ears al- 

 most buried in the dense fur. Several main types occur: the 

 gray or striped cuscuses, which have black, reddish, and brown 

 varieties, the ursine or blackish cuscus of Celebes, and the 

 spotted cuscus, in which the male only is spotted. The pouch 

 opens forward. One or two young occupy it at a time. 



The cuscuses are all vegetarians. They are chiefly nocturnal 

 and spend the day concealed in masses of vines or foliage or 

 in hollow trees. 



The Gray Cuscuses (Phalanger orient alis) are represented 

 all over New Guinea and the adjoining islands including the 

 Solomons. Representatives are known on the Moluccas and on 

 Celebes, as well as on Wetar and Timor. In the mountains of 

 New Guinea a species (P. vestitus) with long silky fur is known. 

 The length is generally thirty to thirty-six inches, of which 

 fourteen to sixteen inches are tail. 



The Bear Cuscus {Phalanger ur sinus) is a large brownish 

 black species, the hairs plentifully grizzled with white, which is 

 found on Celebes, Salayer, and Talaut Islands. Its actions are 

 sluggish. 



