324 THE MARSUPIALS, OR POUCHED ANIMALS 



toes with compressed and curved claws, and the hind-feet have 

 five toes, of which the second and third are shorter than the others, 

 and are united in a common skin. The scientific name Phalangista 

 is derived from this union by skin of the phalanges of the foot. 

 The Cuscus, or Ursine Phalanger, has a prehensile tail, and is 

 found living amongst the branches of trees in the dense woods 

 of the Island of Celebes. During the daytime it is very lethargic, 

 drowsing quietly in a snug retreat amongst the branches, but 

 brightening up and becoming very active as night draws on. Of 

 greater interest are the so-called " Flying Phalangers," which have 

 all the characteristics of the Phalangers, and, in addition, a skin 

 on the flank of the body, which is extended between the fore- and 

 hind -legs, and serves to sustain the animal in the air when descending 

 from a height. The Yellow-bellied Flying Phalanger (Petaurus 

 australis, Shaw) may be taken as the type of the genus, and is 

 fourteen inches long in the body, and nineteen in the tail. The 

 peculiar fold of fur which forms its flying machine is attached to 

 the foreleg as far as the elbow, and all down the legs to the great 

 toe. It is common in all the bushes of New South Wales, par- 

 ticularly those along the coast from Port Philip to Moreton Bay. 

 Mr. Gould states, in addition to this : "In these vast forests, trees 

 of one kind or other are perpetually flowering, and thus offer a 

 never-failing supply of blossoms, upon which the animal feeds. 

 The flowers of the gum-trees, some of which are of great magnitude, 

 are the principal favourites, and, like the rest of the genus, it is 

 nocturnal in its habits, dwelling in holes of trees and in the hollows 

 of branches during the day, and displaying the greatest activity 

 at night while running over the small leafy branches, sometimes 

 even to their very extremities, in search of insects and the honey 

 of the newly-opened blossoms. Its structure being ill-adapted 

 for terrestrial habits, it seldom descends to the ground, except 

 for the purpose of passing to a tree too distant to be attained by 

 springing from the one it wishes to leave. The tops of the trees 

 are traversed at a pace, and with as much ease as if it were on 

 the ground. If chased, it ascends to the highest branches, and 

 performs enormous leaps, sweeping from tree to tree with wonderful 

 address." Another Flying Phalanger is the Sugar Squirrel, which is 

 generally dispersed over the whole of New South Wales where, in 

 common with other Phalangers, it inhabits the magnificent gum-trees. 



