THE MYRMECOBIUS. 



491 



Night is the usual time for the Tapoa Tafa to leave its home and prowl about in 

 search of food, but it is often seen by daylight, and appears to be equally vivacious at 

 either time. It is always a most active animal, and chiefly arboreal in its habits, climb- 

 ing trees and skipping among their branches with the agility of a squirrel. Its long tail 

 may serve to act as a balance during these excursions, but as it is not in the least prehen- 

 sile, is cannot afford assistance in the actual labor of passing from one branch to another. 



Its home is generally made in the hollow trunks of the eucalypti, and in those dark 

 recesses it produces and nourishes its young. It is very widely distributed over Aus- 

 tralasia, being found in equal plenty upon plain or mountain, contrary to the usual 

 habits of Australian animals, which are generally confined within certain local limits, 

 according to the elevation of the ground or the character of the soil. 



On account of the large tuft of black hair that decorates the tail, the Tapoa Tafa is 

 in some works mentioned under the title of the " Brush-tailed Phascogale." 



THE little animals which are 

 grouped together under the title 

 of Pouched Mice are tolerably 

 numerous, the genus Antechinus 

 comprising about twelve or thir- 

 teen species. They are spread 

 rather widely over New South 

 Wales and Southern Australia, 

 and as they are prolific creatures, 

 they are among the most common 

 of the Australian quadrupeds. 

 They are all of inconsiderable 

 size, the greater number hardly 

 exceeding the ordinary mouse in 

 dimensions, though one or two 

 species nearly equal a small rat 

 in size. 



Arboreal in their habits, they 

 are among the most active of tree- 

 loving quadrupeds, running up 

 and down a perpendicular trunk with perfect ease and leaping from one branch to an- 

 other with singular activity of limb and certainty of aim. They can even cling to the 

 under side of a horizontal branch, and are constantly seen running round the branches 

 and peering into any little crevice, precisely after the manner of the ordinary titmice 

 among the birds. They can descend a branch with their heads downward, instead of 

 lowering themselves tail foremost, as is generally the custom among tree climbing 

 quadrupeds, and traverse the branches with admirable rapidity and liveliness. 



The FELLOW-MOOTED MOUSE is a very pretty little creature, its fur being richly tinted 

 with various pleasing hues. 



The face, the upper part of the head, and the shoulders are dark gray, diversified with 

 yellow hairs, and the sides of the body are warmed with a wash of bright chestnut. 

 The under parts of the body, the chin, and the throat are uniform white, and the tail 

 is black. There is often a slight tufting of hair on the extremity of the tail. The 

 total length of the animal is about eight inches, the head and body being rather more 

 than four inches and a half in length, and the tail a little more than three inches. 



The MYRMECOBIUS is remarkable for several parts of its structure, and more espe- 

 cially so for the extraordinary number of its teeth, and the manner in which they are 

 placed in the jaw. Altogether, there are no less than fifty-two teeth in the jaws of an 

 adult and perfect specimen of the Myrmecobius, outnumbering the teeth of every 

 other animal, with the exception of one or two cetacea and the armadillo. There is no 

 pouch in this animal, but the tender young are defended from danger by the long hairs 

 which clothe the under portions of the body. 



YELLOW-FOOTED POUCHED MOUSE, Antechinus tlavlpes. 



