Ibi 2 FOOD OF DASYURES CHAP. 
last genus, but the teeth “are more insectivorous in their 
o b 
character.” There are six or eight mammae. The members of 
this genus are grey or brown, and spotted with white; they are 
Sener si fere Set , 
aS aed Tigao 
aN, 
aT: OC 
al.sph. 
Aang 
Fig. 80.—Skull of Dasyurus. (Lateral view.) al.sph, Alisphenoid ; ang, angular process 
of mandible ; fr, frontal; jw, jugal; dcr, lachrymal; maa, maxilla; nas, nasal ; 
oc.cond, occipital condyle ; par, parietal; par.oc, paroccipital process ; p.max, 
premaxilla ; s.oc, supraoccipital ; sq, squamosal ; sq’, zygomatic process of squa- 
mosal. (From Parker and Haswell’s Zoology. ) 
all arboreal, and feed largely upon birds and their eggs. Mr. 
Thomas has pointed out that in two species, D. viverrinus and 
D. geoffroyi, the striae upon the foot-pads are absent, and that 
Fic. 81.—Dasyure. Dasyurus viverrinus. x4. (After Vogt and Specht.) 
therefore these at least are probably not so purely arboreal 
the rest. The animals are not diurnal, and during the day hide 
themselves in the hollow trunks of trees. They are spoken of 
as “ Native Cats,’ but have the general habits of Martens. JD. 
maculatus is common in Tasmania, but 1s rare in Australia, thus 
“approaching the condition now exhibited by the Thylacine and 
