224 ZOOGEOGRAPHICAL REGIONS 
habitat, and showing curious adaptive resemblances 
to the placentals. An interesting form, discovered not 
many years ago, is the marsupial mole (Notoryctes), 
with a curiously close resemblance to the typical mole 
of the Old World. 
The birds of the region are interesting and peculiar. 
There are no true finches, no woodpeckers, no pheasants, 
and no vultures. New Guinea is especially remarkable 
for its beautiful birds of paradise, represented on the 
mainland chiefly by the bower-birds. Mound-turkeys 
and lyre-birds occur both on the mainland and in the 
islands, and the parrots are exceedingly numerous and 
very characteristic, while the related cockatoos are 
almost peculiar. New Zealand, with many peculiar 
birds, has some remarkable parrots, notably Nestor, 
which has become carnivorous, preying upon sheep, 
and the nocturnal owl parrot (Stringops) with a degene- 
rate keel on its sternum, and but little power of flight. 
Pigeons are also very abundant, and include the most 
brightly coloured members of the order. The honey- 
eaters (Meliphagidae) are peculiar to the region. 
Very striking also are the Running birds. New 
Zealand has the curious little Apteryx, as well as the 
extinct moa (Dinornis), Australia the emu and casso- 
wary. 
The reptilian fauna is less peculiar, but New Zealand 
has a very primitive lizard (Hatteria, p. 228) and no 
snakes. Queensland and New Guinea share with America 
an abundance of tree-frogs of the family Hylidae. The 
type genus Hyla occurs all over Australia, and the 
presence of many members of the family in the Austra- _ 
lian continent is the more remarkable in view of its 
complete absence from Africa and India (cf. p..118). 
The fish fauna of the streams and lakes is somewhat 
