THE AUSTRALIAN' Ml'SET.M MAGAZINE. 



69 



for burrowing. 



MAI!Sl'PI.4L TYPES. 



The primitive in- 

 sectivorous type is 

 represented by the 

 marsupial mole (No- 

 toryctcs) and the 

 banded anteater 



{Myrmccobius ) . T lie 

 native cat, the Tas- 

 mania n devil and 

 Tasmanian tiger are 

 carnivorous. If we 

 examine the skull 

 and teeth of the lat- 

 ter we lind that they 

 arc perfectly adapt- 

 ed for a flesh diet. 



The teeth at the side of the mouth have 

 a shearing' blade and the canines are 

 long' and sharp. The 'possum represents 

 another line of development, having' 

 molar teeth with conical cusps suited for 

 the mastication of leaves and fruit. The 

 kangaroo again is a typical g^ass eater, 

 the upper teeth having sharp ridges 

 which alternate with corresponding 

 ridges in the teeth of the lower jaw. 

 Then Ave have forms like the wombat in 

 which the teeth are adapted for cutting 

 up tough stalks of grass and woody 

 tissues. 



The Marsupial Mole closely resembles the European Mole in its 

 general form and in the modification of its limbs, which are. adapted 



Being a placental mammal the European Mole is not even a distant 

 relative of the Australian Marsupial Mole. 



I'hoto. — CJ. C. Clutton. 



It is confined to the desert regioiis of Central 

 Australia. 



Photo.— (G. C. (Mutton. 



In their locomotor apparatus the mar- 

 supials exfiibit similar adaptive radia- 

 tion. We have the little running forms 

 such as the marsupial mice, from which 

 we pass upwards to the native cats and 

 the Tasmanian wolf. Then there are the 

 hopping types, like the kangaroo rats 

 and the kangaroo, which presents the ex- 

 treme example of an animal that pro- 

 gresses by leaps and bounds. Huirow- 

 ing forms are represented by the bandi- 

 coot, the wombat, and, best of all, by 

 the pouched mole found in the desert re- 

 gions of Cential Australia; it has a 

 conical body, a 

 sharp nose, very 

 small eyes, and 

 limbs admirably 



adapted for pro- 

 gress underground. 

 There are many 

 tree-climbing typefe 

 like the 'possums 

 and so-called squir- 

 rels, culminating in 

 forms which take 

 long leaps from 

 branch to branch, 

 and have developed 

 folds of skin on 

 the sides of the 

 body which enable 

 them to skim 



through the air like 

 kites. 



