THE AUSTRALIAN MUSEUM MAGAZINE. 



other marsupials, although externally it 

 may resemble them very little. Again 

 the wombat miglit on outward appear- 



Flying Squirrels, marsupial and placental. Both have membranes between their limbs 



to enable them to take long flying leaps from tree to tree. But though so similar in 



appearance the Australian form (left) has no af&nity with the American (right). 



Photo. — G. C. Clutton. 



ance be classed with the beaver; it has form an arc with the lower jaw. More- 

 the same stocky build and both are good over, in both these teeth lack roots, so 

 gnawers and diggers. Comparing their that they grow continuously throughout 

 skulls we find that in both the front the life of the animals, and no amount 

 teeth are reduced to two in each jaw, of grinding reduces them. Then in both 

 one on each side; these teeth are chisel- we find a wide space between the front 

 like, grooved, and placed so that they teeth and the succeeding teeth on each 



side of the jaws, an 

 arrangement which 

 is probably useful in 

 allowing the animal 

 to manipulate its 

 food, turn it over . 

 with its tongue, and 

 pass it back to the 

 cheek teeth. But 

 in spite of these 

 striking similarities 

 in their dental ap- 

 paratus there is no 

 difficulty in distin- 

 guishing the skull 

 of the wombat from 

 the skull of any 

 placental. For ex- 

 ample, the roof of 



Marsupial mice are insect-eaters and do not gnaw as does the , +1 4.1 u -1 



house mouse. It is supposed that the earliest marsupials which tue moutll, tlie nara 



found their way into Australia were of this type. palate of placen- 



Photo. — (t. C. Clutton. 



