CLASS I. MAMMALIA: ORDER 13. MARSUPIALIA. 



667 



LONG-NOSED BANDICOOT. 



hensile; the toes are armed with sharp, strong, curved claws. Its size is nearly that of a cat, 

 but the form is low and squat; the color is a grayish-white ; the face, near the snout, pure white, 

 the ears black. In its habits it is mostly nocturnal and arboreal, feeding alike upon insects, eggs, 

 small birds, and fruits. It sometimes invades the barn-yards, and destroys the poultry, it is said, 

 for their blood. It is a good deal hunted, and manifests much dexterity in escaping, by creeping 



THE COMMON OPOSSUM. 



away amid the grass, and sometimes pretending to be dead. In defending itself it bites severely. 

 It is sluggish in its movements, and will sometimes lie on its back in the sun for hours; it often 

 suspends itself from the brush of a tree by its tail. It is very prolific, producing from six to 

 fifteen at a birth. The young at this period are well formed, and weigh from three to four grains 

 each. As soon as produced, they are shoved into the pouch by the mother with her snout, and 

 pushed near the nipples, which they find and grasp by instinct. Their growth is very rapid ; at 

 a week old they weigh thirty grains. They remain in the pouch, attached to the nipple, till they 



