ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY BULLETIN 



1665 



SHORT-TAILED WALLABY 

 With these smaller species the tail is of little 



them, readily distinguished by its reddish-grey 

 color, the Rufous (Aepi/pli/mnus rufescens) is 

 found only in New South Wales, and is twenty- 

 one inches long with a tail fifteen inches. It 

 has an indistinct stripe in front of the hips. 



There is another family of these active little 

 animals namely the Bettongs, (B ettongia) , 

 characterized by the fact that they are the only 

 ground animals having prehensile tails, which 

 they use for carrying bundles of grass for the 

 construction of their nests. A hollow is first 

 scraped out in the ground and in it a dome- 

 shaped nest of grass is built; the top being 

 about level witli the surface of the ground. The 

 animal upon entering the nest draws a bunch 

 of grass after him, and closes the entrance so 

 perfectly that the nest cannot be detected, eas- 

 ily. A fox or dog, however, can readily detect 

 the presence of the owner; if he happens to be 

 at home. If he should be, there is little hope, 

 for the intruder simply pounces down on the 

 nest and usually secures the owner. The var- 

 ieties of these animals are closely allied extern- 

 ally and are difficult to identify without know- 

 ing the locality from which they came. The 

 Tasmanian variety. (B. citn'uulus) is slightly 

 the largest and has white feet instead of brown- 

 ish, as in the others. The underparts arc white 

 and. generally, there is a white tip on its tail. 

 The New South Wales variety, (B. gaimardi) 

 has hair of a more woolly texture than the oth- 

 ers and white hind paws; also a few white hairs 

 at the tip of the tail. The Brush-Tailed Rat- 



Kangaroo. (B. penicillata) is found all over 

 southern and central Australia and has a body 

 length of fourteen inches. The tail which is 

 twelve inches long has a black crest along the 

 upper surface of the lower portion, but not 

 white hairs at the tip. The phinarium is bare 

 of fur as in the other species. This is the var- 

 iety that is usually seen in captivity. 



Educated Chimpanzees. — Our keepers at the 

 Primates' House are giving daily exhibitions in 

 which the chimpanzees and orang-utans promi- 

 nently figure. These exhibitions take place in 

 the large outside cage at the north end of the 

 building, and illustrate the adaptability of the 

 anthropoid apes in learning to do many things 

 that require a high degree of intelligence. The 

 animals take their meals from tables, ride 

 bicycles and go through other interesting man- 

 oeuvres. 



Growth of the Warthog. — Our single speci- 

 men of the African wart-hog has developed 

 into a most spectacular animal. Although his 

 tusks have developed into very long and formid- 

 able weapons, he remains fairly tame, and his 

 keepers freely enter his enclosure. On approach, 

 this animal inspires respect and caution, as he 

 has an alarming habit of gnashing his tusks. In 

 retreat, however, the wart-hog provokes a smile, 

 caused by his insignificant tail. It appears that 

 nature has been singularly stingy in providing 

 him with means of fighting flies, and while his 

 tail is a very busy appendage, it looks like the 

 remnant of an animated shoe-string. 



