BROOD-CARE AMONG MAMMALS 



179 



armadillos and pangolins all burrow, digging out very large 

 chambers at the end of a long tunnel. In these the young are pro- 

 duced, usually three or four at a litter. The scales are at first pale 

 and soft, and the young remain in concealment for a considerable 

 time. 



In all the marsupials the young are born in a very imperfect 

 condition and are at once attached to the teats of the mother. 

 These are placed far back on the body inside the marsupial pouch 

 when that is present. The number 

 of young at a birth varies, but 

 it is never very large, in most 

 cases one or two. The little 

 animals are blind and naked, 

 and even unable to suck. Each 

 is attached to a nipple, and its 

 mouth grows into a sort of tube, 

 which is sometimes so firmly 

 attached to the mother that it 

 cannot be torn away without 

 bleeding. 



As the young are always carried 

 and kept warm by the body of 

 the mother, it is seldom that any 

 preparations are made before 

 birth. The little brush-tailed 

 wallaby, however, and the rabbit- 

 eared bandicoot seek out hollows 

 in the ground, and roof them over 

 skilfully with grass and twigs, 

 and a large number live in hollow 

 trees or scrape out burrows in the 



soil. Whilst it is not so surprising that the mothers of young 

 born with fur more or less like their own, or of squeaking, soft little 

 creatures which snuggle against them and seek the nipple of their 

 own accord, should show maternal instinct, it is extraordinary that 

 a marsupial mother should even take notice of the naked, almost 

 inanimate and quite helpless offspring, and still more so that she 

 should take it up with her tongue and convey it to the nipple. 



All the kangaroos, wallabies and their immediate allies have a 

 marsupial pouch in the female. This is a deep pocket in the furry 

 coat, with the mouth opening forwards and protected by a circular 



FIG. 33. Tree-kangaroo with young 

 in pouch. 



