BY J. J. FLETCHER. 269 



Moreover, as implied in Dr. Giinther's name, " not only the skin 

 of the paratoid region, but that of the entire hack is thickened by 

 numerous glands ;" from these there exudes under certain circum- 

 stances a copious yellow secretion ; Mr. Rose tells me that he has 

 sometimes observed the exudation when handling the toads, and I 

 noticed it in several specimens put into spirit, and also in a speci- 

 men which had but recently died. On the supposition that, as in 

 other toads in which such is known to be the case, the glandular 

 secretion is acrid and renders the animal nauseous and inedible 

 (except perhaps to blackfellows who would soon learn to avoid the 

 integument of the part eaten), and taking into account also the 

 animal's habit of puffing itself out when interfered with, and the 

 conspicuous colour and remarkable character of the markings seen 

 at close quarters, it is possible that not many experiments would 

 be necessary to teach snakes, predaceous birds, or maybe some of 

 the larger lizards to grasp the situation. Such an immunity from 

 attack would also render intelligible the unusual habit — unknown 

 as yet in the case of any other Australian frog — of appearing at 

 times in great numbers in the open, and in the day time, without 

 any attempt at concealment, as established on the independent 

 evidence of capable observers. This point, however, I hope to be 

 able to settle at no very distant date by actual .experiment. 



Of Chiroleptes platycephalic, Gthr., Mr. Rose says "this frog is 

 also a bur rower ; I have found it in a well-formed hollow just 

 large enough to contain the animal comfortably, about one foot 

 underground. I have dug up some scores of them, but I never 

 found any water in the cavities containing them (i.e. as Mr. Aitken 

 says is to be found in the clay balls formed by certain frogs in 

 tropical Australia in which they sojourn during droughts) ; neither 

 is the surrounding earth particularly hard except just in a dry 

 season ; just now (May) the walls of the cells are about as hard as 

 potter's clay after the turning-table period, and before being dried. 

 I send you a portion of one of the cavities which contained a 

 specimen of Chiroleptes, and from the knife marks you will see 

 that it was not particularly hard when first found." 



