September io, 1891] 



NATURE 



449 



THE NE IV A USTRALIAN MARSUPIAL MOLE— 

 NOTORYCTES TYPHLOPS. 



OUR Corresponding Member, Prof. E, C. Stirling, of 

 the University of Adelaide, has most kindly sent to 

 us an original water-coloured drawing of the newly- 

 discovered Australian Marsupial, prepared from a pencil 

 sketch taken from life. The animal is represented upon 

 the surface of one of the red sandhills in which it passes 

 the greater part of its life, among some tussocks of 

 Ariodia irnta?ts, the " porcupine grass " of the interior 

 of Australia, and is figured of the natural size. The 

 drawing will be exhibited at the first scientific meeting of 

 this Society in November next, but in the meanwhile can 

 be inspected in our library by any naturalist who may 

 wish to see it. 



Prof Stirling has also sent us a copy of his paper in 

 the Transactions of the Royal Society of South Australia 

 (read February 3 of the present year), in which this 

 extraordinary animal is fully described. The subjoined 

 particulars as to its habits, extracted from Dr. Stirling's 

 article, will be interesting to the readers of Nature : — 



" It appears that the first specimen was captured by Mr. 

 Wm. Coulthard, manager of the Frew River Station and 

 other northern runs belonging to the Willowie Pastoral 

 Company. Attracted by some peculiar tracks, on reach- 

 ing his camp one evening on the Finke River, while 

 traversing the Idracoura Station with cattle, he followed 

 them up, and found the animal lying under a tussock of 

 spinifex or porcupine grass {Triodia irritans). Though 

 he is an old bush hand, with all the watchful alertness 

 and powers of observation usually acquired by those 

 who live lives of difficulty and danger, this was the first 

 and only specimen of the animal he ever saw. As pre- 

 viously stated, this found its way to the Museum through 

 the agency of Messrs. Benham and Molineux. The three 

 subsequently received shortly afterwards, as well as the 

 last lot recently secured by Mr. Bishop during our 

 journey through the country, were also found on the 

 Idracoura Station. This is a large cattle-run comprising 

 several hundred square miles of country in the southern 

 part of the Northern Territory of South Australia, which 

 lies immediately to the west of the telegraph line between 

 the Charlotte Waters and Alice Springs Stations. The 

 great dry water-course of the Finke River, which runs 

 from north-west to south-east, bounds the run for some 

 eighty miles on the north and north-east. Its distance 

 from Adelaide is, roughly speaking, a thousand miles. 

 Flats and sandhills of red sand, more or less well covered 

 with spinifex and acacias constitute a large portion of the 

 country, and the rainfall is inconsiderable. Curiously 

 enough, all the specimens of Notorydes hitherto received 

 by me have been found within a circumscribed area, four 

 miles from the Idracoura Head Station, which is situated 

 on the Finke watercourse itself, and almost invariably 

 amongst the sandhills. I have it, however, on very fair 

 authority, that the animal has been seen on the Undoolya 

 Station, which lies immediately south of the McDonnell 

 Ranges, and that one also was found drowned after heavy 

 rain at Tempe Downs, a station situated about 120 miles 

 west-south-west of Alice Springs. These points will suffi- 

 ciently define its range, so far as is known at present. 

 They do not appear to be very numerous. Very few of the 

 white men in the district had ever seen it, even though 

 constantly travelling ; and not many of the natives whom 

 I came across recognized the well-executed drawing I 

 carried with me. It must be remembered, however, that 

 I did not pass through the exact spot which so far 

 appears to be its focus of distribution. Nor did a very 

 considerable reward, which I offered, cause any speci- 

 mens to be forthcoming between the first lot received, 

 over two years ago, and that recently secured during my 

 trans-continental trip. With a few exceptions, the ani- 

 mals have been captured by the aboriginals, who, with 



NO. 1 141, VOL. 44] 



their phenomenal powers of tracking, follow up their 

 traces until they are caught. For this reason they can 

 only be found with certainty after rain, which sets the 

 surface of the sand, and enables it to retain tracks that 

 would immediately be obliterated when it is dry and 

 loose. Nor are they found except during warm weather, 

 so that the short period of semi-tropical summer rains 

 appears to be the favourable period for their capture. 

 For this suitable combination of wet and warmth, Mr. 

 Bishop had to wait three months before he was able to 

 get them, and in all cases they were found during the 

 day-time. Perpetual burrowing seems to be the charac- 

 teristic feature of its life. Both Mr. Bishop and Mr. 

 Benham, who have seen the animal in its native state, 

 report that, emerging from the sand, it travels on the 

 surface for a few feet at a slowish pace, with a peculiar 

 sinuous motion, the belly much flattened against the 

 ground, while it rests on the outsides of its fore-paws, 

 which are thus doubled in under it. It leaves behind it 

 a peculiar sinuous triple track, the outer impressions, 

 more or less interrupted, being caused by the feet, and 

 the central continuous line by the tail, which seems to be 

 pressed down in the rear. Constantly on the look-out 

 for its tracks, I was often deceived by those of numerous 

 lizards, which are somewhat similar in these respects. 



" It enters the sand obliquely, and travels under 

 ground either for a few feet or for many yards, not 

 apparently reaching a depth of more than two or three 

 inches, for whilst underground its progress can often be 

 detected by a slight cracking or moving of the sur- 

 face over its position. In penetrating the soil, free 

 use as a borer is made of the conical snout with its 

 horny protecting shield, and the powerful scoop-like 

 claws (fore) are also early brought into play. As it 

 disappears from sight, the hind-limbs, as well, are used 

 to throw the sand backwards, which falls in again behind 

 it as it goes, so that no permanent tunnel is left to mark 

 its course. Again emerging, at some distance, it travels 

 for a itw feet upon the surface, and then descends as 

 before. I could hear nothing of its making, or occupying 

 at any time, permanent burrows. Both my informants 

 laid great stress on the phenomenal rapidity with which 

 it can burrow, as observed in both a state of nature and 

 captivity." 



To these notes of Prof. Stirling I may add the remark 

 that this is certainly one of the most extraordinary dis- 

 coveries in zoology made of late years. Notorydes 

 typhlops, as shown by Prof. Stirling's full and elaborate 

 description and figures, is unquestionably a new and 

 perfectly isolated form of Marsupial life, and must be 

 referred to a new section of the order Marsupialia. We 

 must all congratulate Prof. Stirling on his success in 

 bringing before the world such an important novelty. 



P. L. SCLATER. 



Zoological Society of London, 3 Hanover Square, W., 

 August 20. 



FRANCIS BRUNNOW, PH.D., F.R.A.S. 



WE regret to have to announce the death of Francis 

 Briinnow, whose fortune it was to earn in two 

 continents a reputation as an ardent astronomer and an 

 indefatigable observer and computer. He was not less 

 distinguished as a Professor at Ann Arbor, Michigan, 

 than when he filled the Chair of Astronomy at Dublin, and 

 occupied the position there of Astronomer- Royal. He 

 was fortunate in his early career. Nearly fifty years ago 

 he was one of the band of earnest astronomers that 

 Encke summoned round himself at Berlin, and thus he 

 became the friend and companion of Galle, of Bremiker, 

 and of D'Arrest. The time, too, was interesting. Adams 

 and Leverrier had traced the existence of a Neptune, 

 and the issue of that well-known drama was worked out 



