120 



FlYIKG 



Ol'OSbUM. 



WtESEL. 



Spiny Ant- 



£AT£R. 



FAUNULA OF NEW HOLLAND. 



Flying Opojum, H'ljl. ^lad. N° 228. Phillip, 297. tab. 54. has 

 membranes extending from leg to leg like a flying fquinel ; and 

 the fur moft cxquifite ; it is even compared to that of the Sea 

 Otter of the weltern parts of North America. Our travellers do 

 not trouble us with the natural hiftory of this, or fcarcely any 

 other animal. 



The Spotted Wee/el, Hi/l. ^ad. N° 272. or ^4oll of Hawkf- 

 'uoorth, iii. 626. is black, fpotted with white. The length from 

 nofe to rump is eighteen inches, the tail nearly the fame. 



We mull now take a great leap to the genus oi Ant-eaters. 

 New Hollajid has furniflied us with a moft curious kind, fee 

 Hijl. ^ad. ii. N° 467. Naturalifts Mifcellany, vol. ii. tab. 109. 

 The length is one foot; the nofe, long, flender, and tubular, the 

 tongue long and flender; the feet extremely broad; and like 

 the fore feet of the mole, adapted to digging. On the fore feet, 

 are five toes with blunt flatted nails ; on the hind, a fliort thick 

 thumb, without either nail or claw. The two outer joints 

 of the four toes are furniflied with a pointed claw ; the two 

 next with blunt claws ; the tail very fliort. The whole upper 

 part of the body, from the hind part of the neck, is covered with 

 ftrong white fpines, exa(5lly like thofe of the porcupine. The 

 head, and all the under fide of the b:^dy is coated with fliort 

 black briftly hairs, the tail very fliort *. This fpecies was found 

 in the midft of an ant-hill. 



A VERY large Bat^ perhaps the Ternate^ Hiji. ^ad. ii. N°495, 



* The Duck-billed Platypus, figured in the Naturalifts Mifcellany, tab. 385, is an animal of 

 a conformation fo Angular, that we can fcarcely fuppofe Nature, amidft her Infinite variety, ever 

 formed fo heterogeneous a compofition— a fliort time will; we hope, remove our doubts. E. 



iS 



