194 NATURAL HISTORY. 



position has the leg bones straight, the thigh bones oblique, and the pelvis and spine erect, the great 

 tail being a prop behind. Owen remarks that in man it is the massive and expanded muscles of 

 the back of the pelvis and upper part of the thigh, or the gluteal muscles,* which are the chief struc- 

 tures in maintaining the erect posture. But in the Kangaroo, the narrow bones of the haunch could 

 not afford attachment to great gluteal muscles ; so a muscle which is but slightly formed in man. and is 

 called the little psoas, is greatly developed in the Kangaroo, and has evidently the power of main- 

 taining the erect posture, although it is situate within the body and in front of the spine. The great 

 jumping power is due to the leverage of the ankle and long toes, and the muscles which supply the 

 tendon already mentioned, and others which have the same office. These are of great strength and size, 

 and there are some accessory muscles to the thigh and leg. The long spine of the back has powerful 

 processes, and the jar of the great jumps is received by two vertebrae which, anchylosed or united 

 together, form the sacrum. The tail is made up of many vertebrae, and covered with muscles. The 

 great blood-vessels running underneath it have many chevron, or V-shaped, bones, to protect 

 them from pressure. The marsupial bones, one on each side, are long, and broad below ; they are 

 movable on the pubis, and afford attachment to muscular fibres, act as a pulley for others, and 

 strengthen the walls of ftie abdomen. Formed within nuiscles and tendons, they are rather bony 

 growths than parts of the true skeleton, and hence they may be absent in some of the order, although 

 they are always present in the Kangaroos. 



Although well provided with strong limbs and muscles, and acute senses, the Kangaroos 

 living the life of the deer and cattle of other regions than Australia, are subject to the attacks of 

 beasts of prey and hunters. In Australia the great Camivora do not exist, but there is a native dog, 

 the Dingo, aborigines, and trained dogs and colonists, who enjoy a Kangaroo hunt. The native 

 dogs stalk and run them down, the natives spear them after sometimes forming a great circle and 

 closing in and yelling and shouting. But the rifle and trained hounds have dislodged many more than 

 the natives, and the animals are becoming scarcer near the settlements than in former years. Dogs 

 which run by sight afford many an exciting hunt, and the Kangaroo starts off, bounding at a great 

 rate, and clearing all sorts of impediments with ease. It is hard riding to keep up with the chase, 

 and especially in hot weather, when the Kangaroo often escapes, thanks to its greater powers of 

 endurance. Sometimes the Kangaroo will stand at bay, and will rip up a solitary Dog with its 

 claws, or will kill with a single blow of the leg and tail. Three or more Dogs are usually laid on, one 

 more fleet than the others, to "pull" the Kangai-oo, while the others rush in and kill it. Mr. Gould t 

 says that it sometimes adopts a singular mode of defending itself, by clasping its short, powerful 

 fore limbs round its antagonist, leaping away with it to the nearest water hole, and then keeping 

 it beneath the water until drowned. 



Mr. R. Foulerton, who has paid some attention to the habits of the Marsupials, writes that the 

 Great Kangaroo, although its numbers have been greatly diminished in some pastoral districts, still 

 is numerous enough to render some runs almost worthless for pastoral purposes. They may be seen 

 there in thousands, eating off all the best grass, and in the bad seasons reducing the cattle to starving 

 point. They have few enemies but man, as even the native Dog will never attack them, unless they 

 are very young. An " old man " Kangaroo is a formidable opponent ; he will severely wound and 

 even kill a man, unless approached cautiously. Their mode of attack is to " hug " him bear fashion, 

 and then rip him with the hind foot. When pursued, they generally take to the water, and there 

 stand at bay, and the luckless man or dog who gets within their grasp is forced under the water, and 

 held there until drowned. The middle-aged Kangaroos, or Flyers, easily outstrip the hunting Dogs 

 at the start, but they are gradually gained upon. When caught, the Kangaroo fights to the last. 



The diminutive fore limbs are separated by narrow shoulders, and although the upper arm is short 

 and well furnished with muscles, the fore arm is long, slender, but very movable. The hand is short 

 and broad, and there are four curved, sharp claws, the first 'one, or thumb, being the smallest, and 

 the third and fourth the largest. The hair covers over the fingers to the claws, which can 

 separate widely, grasp and hold, and be bent on the palm. The movements of the wrists and fore 

 arms are considerable, and a large and long upward-turning muscle is in the space between the ulna 



* See also Vol. I., page 58, Note. t Mr. Gould's works on Australian animals, occasionally quoted by me. 



