REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1920. 79 



on behalf of the Department of Agriculture in order to collect plants 

 which might advantageously be introduced into the United States, 

 and make other pertinent botanical studies. The expedition sailed 

 from New York on July 16, 1919, and landed in Cape Town, South 

 Africa. A first installment of specimens as noted above has been re- 

 ceived and is of great interest and importance. The third major ex- 

 pedition we owe to the continued generosity of Dr. TV. L. Abbott, who 

 in view of the poverty of the National Museum in Australian material 

 and the threatened extinction of the native fauna, decided to send 

 Mr. Charles M. Hoy to the southern continent. In the words of the 

 curator of mammals it may be truly said that from the standpoint 

 of the national collections probably no field-work of similar scope 

 could approach this in importance. The fact had long been recog- 

 nized, but the means for putting such a project into execution have 

 hitherto been lacking. The remarkable Australian mammal fauna 

 was represented in the Museum by only 200 specimens, and the other 

 vertebrates were not better off. Not only is this true of our collec- 

 tions, but it is equally true of other museums in America. Mr. Hoy 

 arrived in Sydney about the end of May, 1919, and from June to 

 November he collected in various localities in New South Wales. An 

 interesting account of his' experience up to that time has been pub- 

 lished in the Smithsonian Exploration Pamphlet for 1919, Smith- 

 sonian Miscellaneous Collections (vol. 72, No. 1, pp. 29-32). Since 

 then he has continued his work in South Australia with varying suc- 

 cess. To show both the importance of this expedition and the diffi- 

 culties already encountered the following extract is taken from one 

 of Mr. Hoy ? s reports: 



The poor luck in mammals is explained by the total extermination of most 

 of them. This has been caused mainly through the introduction of foxes and 

 cats. Both of these animals are extremely plentiful. The fox has only been 

 plentiful during the last three and four years and is still being introduced 

 by the sheep men as they claim that the fox kills the rabbits. This may be so 

 but what killing he has done has made very little impression on the rabbits 

 while the native mammals have been completely wiped out. This has been 

 done only during the last few years which is illustrated by what an old kanga- 

 roo hunter told me. He said that as late as two years ago he was sure of at 

 least six or seven dozen wallaby skins a week, while this year he hasn't even 

 seen one ! This was substantiated by numerous other individuals. One gentle- 

 man took me to a place where only eight months ago he shot nineteen wallabies 

 in an evening. He also said that bandicoots and "pinkies" (quite probably 

 the rabbit bandicoot) were quite common then. We searched carefully but 

 not even any signs were seen while traps brought no result. The banded ant- 

 eater (Myrmecobius) was also occasionally seen up to several years ago. but 

 the last one seen was taken by a boy in a rabbit trap eighteen months ago. 

 The bandicoots and "pinkies " are said to still exist but I was not able to hear 

 of any being seen in the last six months. That the cats are working havoc 

 among the birds is shown by the fact that one cat I killed had five birds and 

 the unidentified remains of a small marsupial in its stomach. 



