﻿THE Marsupial moles. 189 



modes of life, or to genetic affinity. Professor E. D. Cope, of 

 Philadelphia, pronounced emphatically in favour of the latter 

 view, at the same time expressing the opinion that Notorydes 

 was probably a member of the Insectivora, and not a Marsupial 

 at all. Subsequent researches have, however, conclusively 

 proved its Marsupial affinities ; and since it is perfectly clear 

 that the Marsupial Mole could not have been the ancestor of 

 the Golden Moles, and the latter the original stock whence the 

 whole of the other Insectivora took origin, there is probably no 

 sort of relationship between the two genera, whose mutual re- 

 semblance would thus seem solely due to parallelism in de- 

 velopment. At the same time it must be confessed that the 

 exact similarity between the molar teeth of the two is some- 

 what difficult to explain, although it may probably be ac- 

 counted for by both having retained this primitive type of 

 tooth from early ancestors. 



THE MARSUPIAL MOLE. NOTORYCTES TYPHLOPS. 



Notorydes typhlops^ Stirling, Trans. Roy. Soc. South Australia, 



1891, p. 154; Ogilby, Cat. Australian Mammals, p. 5 



(1892). 



[Plate XXXI.) 



Characters.—Size small ; form stout ; fur long, soft, and of a 



bright lustrous silky appearance. General colour golden red, 



sometimes darker across the loins, and a patch of darkish red 



surrounding the pouch ; inner surface of pouch sparsely lined 



with reddish fawn-coloured hairs. Upper surface of tail 



covered with fur similar to that of the back on its basal half, 



the sides and lower surface being naked. Length of head and 



body about 5 inches ; of tail rather more than an inch. 



Distribution. — Central South Australia. 



Habits. — It appears from the account given by its describer 

 Dr. Stirling that the Marsupial Mole, or " Ur-quamata," as it is 



