THE NARROW-FOOTED POUCHED MICE. Ev? 
short-haired, rufous above and dark brown beneath, the ter- 
minal half black and slightly bushy all round. Number of 
teats not known. Length of head and body about 5 inches ; 
of tail 6 inches. 
In addition to its inferior dimensions, this species may be 
readily distinguished by the base of the tail being red instead 
of grey, as well as by the greater proportionate length of that 
appendage. 
Distribution. South and West Australia. 
THE NARROW-FOOTED POUCHED MICE. GENUS 
SMINTHOPSIS. 
Sminthopsis, Thomas, Ann. Mus. Genova, ser. 2, vol. iv., p. 503 
(1887). 
Body unspotted; form slender and graceful; ears large 
and broad ; tail moderate or short, short-haired, sometimes 
thickened ; hind feet slender and delicate, with subequal toes 
furnished with small delicate claws; a clawless first toe, or 
hallux, on the hind foot ; soles of hind feet partially haired, the 
naked portion granulated, and with or without pads, the latter, 
when present, being either smooth or but faintly striated. 
Pouch well-developed; eight or ten teats. Three pairs of 
premolar teeth in each jaw. 
The Pouched Mice of this genus may be readily distinguished 
from Lhascologale by the conformation of their hind feet, which 
are narrow, with granulated or hairy soles; whereas in the 
latter these feet are broad, with smooth naked soles. 
The Narrow-footed Pouched Mice, which are confined to 
Australia and Tasmania, although agreeing with the members 
of the preceding genus in being insectivorous, differ in being 
exclusively terrestrial Hence they may be likened to the 
Shrews of otherregions. The three smaller species are so alike 
_ that their discrimination is a matter of some difficulty ; and it is 
2 AY 
