﻿THE PHALANGERS, &C. 75 



and the number of young produced at a birth appears to be 

 either two or one. The strong musky odour from which the 

 creature takes its name is perceptible in both sexes, although 

 much more strongly developed in the female than in her con- 

 sort. 



THE PHALANGERS, &c. FAMILY PHALANGERID^. 



The second great family of the herbivorous Diprotodont 

 Marsupials is typically represented by the creatures properly 

 known as Phalangers, which the colonists of Australia per- 

 sist in misnaming Opossums. It includes, however, several 

 other forms, such as the Flying Phalangers and the Koala, 

 together with the remarkable and aberrant Long-snouted 



Side view of Skull of a species of Phalanger, 



Pouched-Mouse. Although the number of sub-families (3), and 

 likewise of genera (12), is the same in this family as in the 

 Macropodid(B^ the list of species is considerably less, being just 

 over thirty instead of somewhat exceeding fifty. 



If it were not for the existence of the Musk-Kangaroo, which, 

 as we have seen, forms in many respects a connecting link 

 between them, the Fhalangeridcz would be easy enough to 

 separate from the Macropodidce ; but, as it is, a clear distinctive 



