THE SPOTTED CUSCUS. 463 



the tints are precisely alike. The brown hue of the fur is in some examples deepened 

 into a rich black-brown ; others are almost entirely gray on the upper surface of the 

 body and parachute membrane ; while specimens of a beautiful white are not of very 

 unfrequent occurrence. In all cases, however, the fur of the under portions, and inner 

 faces of the limbs, preserves its white hue. 



The whole of the fur is extremely long, being no less than two inches in length on 

 the back. It is very soft and silken in texture, and is remarkably loose and glossy, so 

 that it waves in the air at every movement of the animal, or at the touch of every breath 

 of wind that may stir the atmosphere. On the tail the hair is remarkably long and 

 bushy, and gradually deepens in color from a pale brown at the base to a dark, blackish- 

 brown at the tip. 



The animal is found inhabiting the vast forest ranges that run from Port Phillip to 

 Moreton Bay, and is seldom, if ever, found in any part of the country except in the 

 eastern or south-eastern districts of New South Wales. 



The food of the Taguan consists of leaves, buds, and the young shoots of trees, 

 chiefly of the eucalypti, which it eats only during the hours of night. It seldom troubles 

 itself to descend to the ground, for it can easily pass from one tree to another by means 

 of the wonderful apparatus with which it is gifted, but when it does come to earth, 

 prowls about in search of some vegetation that may afford an agreeable variety to the 

 too uniform diet of leaves and buds. 



The animals which form the genus Cuscus, and of which the SPOTTED Cuscus is a 

 good example, have been separated from their neighbors on account of the structure of 

 the tail, which, instead of being covered with hair, is naked except at its base, and is 

 thickly studded with minute tubercles. They are inhabitants of the Molucca Islands, 

 Amboyna and New Guinea, and have never been found in New South Wales nor in Van 

 Diemen's Land. The name Cuscus is Latinized from the native term couscous, or 

 coescoes ; and the specific term, maculatus, or spotted, refers to the peculiar markings 

 which decorate the fur of the species which is represented in the engraving. 



In size the Cuscus is equal to a tolerably large cat, as a specimen of average size 

 will measure about three feet in total length, the tail being fifteen or sixteen inches 

 long, and the head and body about eighteen or nineteen inches. There are, however, 

 several examples where the animal has attained to a considerably greater dimension. 

 It is a tree-loving animal, and is very seldom seen away from the congenial haunts 

 among which it loves to dwell, and for traversing which it is so admirably adapted by 

 nature. 



The tail of this creature is remarkably prehensile, and the animal never seems to be 

 content unless this member be twisted round some supporting object. Whenever the 

 Cuscus thinks that it is in danger, or that it may be seen by an enemy, it immediately 

 suspends itself by its tail from a branch, and there hangs, swaying about in the wind 

 among the leaves as if it were some lifeless fruit. 



It is said that this curious propensity is turned to good account by any one who 

 wishes to capture a Cuscus without any trouble on his own part except a large amount 

 of patient waiting. When the Cuscus is conscious of the human gaze, and has suspended 

 itself by its tail from a branch, it hangs in counterfeited death until it fancies that the 

 peril is overpast. Nothing will induce the animal to give the least signs of life as long 

 as the eye is not taken from it. According to popular report, for the absolute truth of 

 which I do not vouch, it is said that if the man will steadily keep his eye on the sus- 

 pended animal, it will hang until its wearied muscles refuse to support the weight of its 

 body, and it drops helplessly to the ground. 



The movements of the Cuscus among the branches are not characterized by the dashing 

 elegance which characterizes the arboreal feats of the petaurists, but are slow and cautious, 

 the creature never venturing to put itself in a perilous position without having secured 

 itself firmly by its tail. On this account it is thought, with some reason, to bear analogy 

 to the slow-moving lemurs, to which it bears some sort of external resemblance. The 

 food of this animal generally is of a vegetable nature, and consists of fruits, leaves, buds, 

 young twigs, and other similar substances ; but the creature is capable of eating animal 



