ae 
THE WATER-OPOSSUMS. 221 
short-haired remainder. Length of head and body of male 
about 51% inches ; of tail 2%4 inches. 
Distribution.—S,. Paulo, Brazil. 
Nore.—Mr. Oldfield Thomas informs me, on the authority of Dr. 
Goeldi, that the Opossum called by Burmeister Aficrodelphys alboguttata 
(Th. Bras. i., p. 340) is nothing but a young specimen of the common 
Dasyurus viverrinus of Australia, the Brazilian locality being, of course, 
erroneous. 
HiK WATER-OPOSSUMS. GENUS CHIRONECTES. 
Chironectes, Uliger, Prodromus Syst. Mamm., p. 76 (1811). 
Distinguished from Dzdelphys by the presence ofa prominent 
tubercle on the inner side of the fore foot simulating a sixth 
toe, and by the hind feet being webbed as far as the ends of the 
toes, so that only their terminal pads project beyond the 
webbing. Owing to the first hind toe, or hallux, being in- 
cluded in the webbing, it is much less opposable than in the 
True Opossums. 
According to the author of the British Museum Catalogue 
of Marsupials, the single representative of this genus is more 
nearly allied to the True Opossums of the sub-genus Metachirus 
than to any of the others. 
I, WATER-OPOSSUM OR YAPOCK. CHIRONECTES MINIMUS. 
Lutra minima, Zimmermann, Geograph. Geschicte, vol. ii., p. 
317 (1780). 
Didelphis minima, Cuvier, Tabl. Elem., p. 125 (1798). 
Chironectes minimus, Illiger, Prodromus Syst. Mamm., p. 76 
(1811); Thomas, Cat. Marsup. Brit. Mus., p. 368 (1888). 
Chironectes variegatus, Uliger, Abhandl. Akad. Berlin for 1811, 
p. 107 (1815). 
Chironectes palmata, Cuvier, Régne Animal, vol. i., p. 174 
(1817), 
