136 DR. F. WOOD JONES ON THE [ Feb. 16, 
have been gnawed by rats, and not torn open by Birgus latro, as 
they are often said to be. Even those that are trapped around 
the Telegraph quarters are almost invariably full of coconut, and 
most come into the houses to obtain water rather than for food. 
Before the Telegraph-station was built no water was available, 
save that collected during showers in the bases of the palm-leaves. 
It has been killed in vast numbers since the opening of the 
Telegraph-station on Pulu tikus in 1901, but its numbers do not 
seem to have diminished at all. Considering its extreme 
abundance it does very little harm, save eating the copra stored 
on the island, and it has never adopted the practice of nibbling 
the green nut, that makes the rats on the other islands such an 
economical curse. 
Mus decumanus, typ.—This is the pest of the atoll, and does 
incalculable damage to the coconut plantations. A perpetual war 
is waged against it by means of traps and dogs; natives are 
specially told off for the purpose of rat killing, and all the dead 
rats are regularly recorded. Apart from eating copra, and 
damaging stores, it has learned to climb the palms, and destroys 
countless nuts by nibbling them through, just where the stalk joins 
the husk. It is known in the islands as the ‘ New’ or ‘ Norwegian’ 
rat, and is always distinguished by the natives from the Pulu 
tikus rat. 
Mus rattus, typ—Is common on Pulu gangsa and some of the 
small southern islets, and I have had one specimen from Pulu 
Selma, where it is not nearly so common as J. decumanus. It 
does not exist in such numbers as does J/. decuwmanus, but it has 
learned the same destructive habits. It is never met with on 
Pulu tikus. 
Mus musculus Linn.—By no means abundant, although for a 
few months in 1905 it became very common in Pulu tikus; on 
that island it does not appear to have been seen in any numbers 
until about 1903, and it was doubtless introduced with stores from 
Singapore. 
A herd of feral deer lived for long in Pulu luar. The animals 
were introduced from Java and from Singapore, and consisted of 
two species, the Sambar (Cervus hippelaphus) and the Kedang 
(Cervus muntjac). All were dead when I left the islands in 1906, 
and the only trace of their presence was a well-marked “ browse 
limit” to the trees, a novel feature in a coral-island landscape. 
Waifs and strays include bats of some small species that did 
not appear during my stay in the atoll, and that are said to be 
the Pipistrellus murrayi Andrews, from Christmas Island. <A 
large monkey is also said to have been washed ashore, and to have 
long survived in the islands; the method of its advent is not 
known. 
The domesticated animals include dogs, cats, and pigs; sheep 
have been turned down, with but little success; and rabbits 
liberated on Pulu luar do not seem to have multiplied greatly. 
