1434 



One of the smallest and at the same time the most elegant of Mam- 

 s mals is the exquisite little creature commonly known as the pygmy 

 flying phalanger (Acrobates Pygm&a}, in which the length of the head 

 and body only slightly exceeds two and one-half inches; that of the tail being some- 

 what more. This phalanger is readily distinguished from those yet noticed by the 

 long hair on the tail being arranged in two opposite fringes like the vanes of a 

 feather. The general build of the animal is extremely light and delicate; the flying 

 membrane is very narrow, extending from the elbow to the flank, where it almost 

 disappears, and thence to the knee; while the toes are furnished with expanded pads 

 at their tips. The fur is long, soft, and silky; its general color on the upper parts 

 being brownish gray; while on the margins of the flying membrane and beneath, to- 

 gether with the inner sides of the limbs, it is white. The teeth are sharp, and ap- 



KOALA. 

 (One-sixth natural size.) 



parently adapted for an insectivorous diet. In spite of its diminutive proportions, 

 the female has a well-developed pouch containing four nipples; but it is difficult to 

 imagine the minuteness which must necessarily characterize the newly-born young. 

 The pygmy flying phalanger is confined to Queensland, New South Wales, and 

 Victoria, and is reported to be very abundant in the neighborhood of Port Jackson. 

 Its food consists of honey and insects; and its agility in leaping from branch to 

 branch is described as little short of marvelous. 



The little pen-tailed phalanger (Distcechurtts pennatus}. of New 

 Pen-Tailed - . . , 



ph . Guinea, has precisely the same relation to the preceding animal as is 



presented by Leadbeater's phalanger to the members of the genus 

 PetauruSy being in fact a pygmy flying phalanger without the parachute. The 

 foot-pads are, however, wanting. The general appearance of the animal is very 



