) 
ae 
THE OPOSSUMS. 213 
a white ring encircling the elbow; back of fore feet pale 
brown, of hind feet white. Ears very large and leaf-like, with 
the anterior basal projection small and rounded. ‘Toes and 
foot-pads asin the Murine Opossum. Number of teats unknown. 
Tail long, slender, and tapering, with the basal half-inch furry, 
elsewhere naked; in colour grey above and whiter inferiorly. 
Length of head and body of female about 5 inches; of tail 
7 inches. 
Distribution—Central and Eastern Brazil. 
XIII. VELVETY OPOSSUM. DIDELPHYS VELUTINA, 
Didelphys velutina, Wagner, Archiv. fiir. Nat., vol. viii., p. 360 
(1842); Thomas, Cat. Marsup. Brit. Mus., p. 352 (1888). 
Microdelphys velutina, Burmeister, Erlaut. Faun. Brasil., p. 86 
(1856). 
Characters.—Size small; fur peculiarly soft, crisp, and vel- 
vety. General colour soft Mouse-grey, suffused with dull rusty- 
brown along the sides; face paler, with the eye-mark indis- 
tinct; chin yellowish-white ; chest rusty-fawn ; remainder of 
under-parts pale cream-colour, with the bases of the hairs dark 
slaty, the line of demarcation between the colours being well- 
defined ; inner sides of limbs and the feet coloured like the 
under-parts. Ears large, with a skght convex anterior basal 
projection. Fifth hind toe reaching to the end of the second 
joint of the fourth. ‘Tail shorter than the head and body, with 
its basal half-inch thickly furred. Length of head and body of 
male about 34 inches; of tail £ inches. 
Distribution—S. Paulo, Brazil. 
This very rare form appears separable from the Grey 
Opossum solely on account of the shortness of the tail ; and 
additional specimens are needed to show whether this feature 
is constant, 
