Prof. Owen on the Ornithorhynchus. 317 



XXXIV. — Remarks on the ' Observations sur /'Ornithorhynque ' 

 par M. Jules Verraux. By Prof. Owen, F.R.S. 



One of the admirable characteristics of the National Museum of 

 Zoology in France is the staff of " Naturalistes Voyageurs n at- 

 tached to the Jardin des Plantes. These gentlemen, after receiving 

 the requisite zoological acquirements, are sent to various parts of 

 the world to collect animals and plants for the museum at the 

 expense of the government *. Their preparatory pursuits emi- 

 nently fit them for observing the living phenomena of rare 

 animals in their native environment, and the names of several of 

 these collectors have obtained high and deserved repute in the 

 records of zoological science : those of Diard, Duvaucel, Dela- 

 lande, will readily suggest themselves, and to these we may add 

 that of the enterprising nephew of Delalande, M. Jules Verraux, 

 who after having spent some years in Australasia, has recently 

 returned to Paris with rich collections for the Jardin des Plantes. 



During a sojourn of fifteen months in Tasmania, M. Verraux 

 devoted much time and pains to studying the habits of the Orni- 

 thorhynchi in their native rivers, and has published the general 

 results in the l Revue Zoologique ' for May of the present year. 

 His observations are the more valuable as they appear to have 

 been made without the knowledge of any of the recent steps 

 that had been taken towards a resolution of the mystery of the 

 generation and development of the paradoxical mammal, and I 

 propose, therefore, to notice them here in connection with the 

 actual state of our knowledge of those points prior to the publi- 

 cation of M. Verraux' s remarks. 



He found the Ornithorhynchi most abundant in the river of 

 New Norfolk, Tasmania, but succeeded in killing some indivi- 

 duals at a considerable altitude on Mount Wellington. 



His description of their burrows accords with that given by 

 Mr. George Bennett f : those excavated in clayey soils, though 

 they have numerous outlets — one always below or level with the 

 surface of the stream — contain only a single nest, placed at the 

 extremity furthest from the water, and spacious enough to hold 

 three or four of these animals : the nest is composed of reeds 

 and other aquatic plants, and is thick enough to defend the ani- 

 mal from the damp. 



The Ornithorhynchus is an excellent burrower. M. Verraux saw 

 one dig a hole of more than two feet deep, in a very hard gra- 

 velly soil, in less than ten minutes : during this operation the 



* In the year 1835 there were eight of these officers engaged in travelling 

 in Hindostan, Madagascar, the Cape, Nnbia, &c, at an expense to the go- 

 vernment in that year of 25,000 fr. 



t Trans. Zool. Soc. vol. i. 1834. 



