﻿112 ALT.EN S NATURALISTS LIBRARY. 



and prehensile. Molar teeth evenly rounded, with four cusps, 

 with the exception of the last, which is frequently absent. 



This genus, which includes four species, is distributed over 

 New Guinea, Western Australia, and Tasmania. " It is," re- 

 marks Mr. Thomas, " evidently intermediate between Acrobates 

 and Fefaurus, and has had apparently to give way to these more 

 highly specialised and, presumably, later forms wherever the 

 two have come in contact. Of this the distribution of the 

 genus is a curious example, since it is isolated in the three 

 places most conspicuous for their retention of ancient forms — 

 New Guinea, Western Austraha, and Tasmania — while no 

 species appears now to live in the temperate parts of Eastern 

 Australia, where the more highly developed genera above re- 

 ferred to have their principal home, and where, judging by its 

 distribution, Dromicia must obviously at one time have lived."' 



L WESTERN DORMOUSE-PHALANGER. DROMICIA CONCINNA. 



Dromicia concinna, Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc, 1845, p. 2 ; 



Thomas, Cat. Marsup. Brit. Mus., p. 146 (1888). 

 Phalangista {Dromicia) concinna, Waterhouse, Nat. Hist. 



Mamm., vol. i., p. 314 (1846). 

 Phala?igista {Dromicia) neilli, Waterhouse, op. cit., p. 315. 



Characters. — Size small; form very light and delicate. General 

 colour bright fawn ; hairs of under-parts pure white through- 

 out ; dark eye-mark nearly obsolete. Ears long, rather narrow, 

 evenly oval. Limbs fawn-coloured externally, white on the 

 inner side Tail slender. Only three pairs of molar teeth. 

 Length of head about 3 inches ; of tail slightly more. 



This species may be distinguished from all the other three 

 by the hairs of the under-parts being pure white throughout 

 their length, instead of slate-coloured at the roots ; and also by 



