A MOUSE-LIKE OPOSSUM 195 



the trouble is over, again tucks its head under its body, out 

 of sight, and sleeps on. 



The Murine Opossum 1 — a name which means Mouse- 

 like Opossuvi — is a South American species which is remark- 

 able because of its diminutive size. The full-grown female 

 specimen shown in the accompanying illustration, with a 

 brood of seven hairless young clinging to the fur of her body, 

 was about the size of an Eastern chipmunk. The abdominal 

 pouch is wholly wanting in this species, and from birth the 

 naked and almost helpless young must either cling to the fur 

 of the mother or die. As they grow larger, they travel on 

 the back of the mother, with their tendril-like tails clinging 

 to her tail. 



The specimen shown reached New York just as a score of 

 others have before it, — hidden in the interior of a bunch of 

 bananas ! 



1 Mar-mo'sa murina. 



