THE PHALANGISTS. 757 



tail round a bundle of grass and hopping away merrily with its burden. 

 The mother invariably drags a tuft of grass over the entrance whenever 

 she leaves or enters her home. 



GENUS HYPSIPRYMNUS. 



The POTOROO or KANGAROO Rat, Hypsipryninus minor, is the most 

 typical of the four species. 



It is but a diminutive animal, the head and body being only fifteen 

 inches long, and the tail between ten and eleven inches. The color of 

 the fur is brownish-black, pencilled along the back with a gray-white. 

 The under parts of the body are white, and the fore-feet are brown. The 

 tail is equal to the body in length, and is covered with scales, through 

 the intervals of which sundry short, stiff, and black hairs protrude. 



The family Phalangistid.e constitutes one of the most varied and 

 interesting groups of Marsupials, being modified in various ways for an 

 arboreal life. These variations within the range of a single family indi- 

 cate the great antiquity of the Australian fauna. It comprises eight 

 genera. 



GENUS PHASCOLARCTUS. 



The Koala, Pliascolarctns cincrcns (Plate LXIII), is the Australian 

 representative of the American sloth. The toes of the forefeet or paws 

 are divided into two sets, the one composed of the two inner toes, and 

 the other of the three outer. 



The head has a very unique aspect, on account of the tufts of long 

 hairs which decorate the ears. The muzzle is devoid of hair, but feels 

 like cotton velvet when gently stroked with the fingers. 



GENUS PHALANGISTA. 



The Phalangists are characterized by possessing a prehensile tail. 

 This member, although to all appearance covered with a heavy coating 

 of long hair, has its inferior surface for some distance from the extremity 

 bare of fur. The genus contains five species. 



The Sooty Phalangist or Tapoa, Phalangista fuliginosa, is prized 

 for its soft and beautiful fur which usually is of a deep blackish-brow i 



