6916 Quadrupeds. 



their vigorous efforts to escape ; whereas in the morning they will be 

 found rolled up and fast asleep. Still I am now of opinion that all 

 the Australian crepuscular and night animals, — judging from those I 

 have been able to observe in captivity, — although very active, and 

 feeding principally at night, will leave their places of concealment 

 during the day, for a short time, for the purpose of feeding. 



The male animal, as if to keep up its bird-like character, has a spur, 

 moveable, like that of the barn-door cocks. This is found also in the 

 Echidna, or porcupine ant-eater, another of the monotrematous 

 family; but, judging from experiments on both animals, cannot be 

 considered a weapon of offence or defence, and is for some purpose 

 in the economy of the animal at present unknown to us. From my 

 recent observations I consider the question of the spur in the male 

 being a poisonous weapon as now decided ; for the living male spe- 

 cimen, though very shy and wild, can be handled with impunity. 

 Although making violent efforts to escape, and even giving me some 

 Severe scratches with the hind claws in its attempts, still either in or 

 out of the water he has never attempted to use the spur as a weapon 

 of offence. Indeed, the scratching I have before alluded to has not 

 been done by the animal intentionally, as it is to all intents and pur- 

 poses perfectly harmless ; but accidentally by the hind claws, which 

 alone are sharp, in the efforts made to extricate itself from my grasp. 

 The female will float feeding upon the water, and is much tamer than 

 the male. The latter keeps swimming about below, and it is a long 

 time before he ventures to put more than the snout above the water, 

 and then rarely more than the head and a little of the upper part of 

 the body. 



From the 29th to the 31st of December they were lively and well. 

 I placed them for one or two hours in the water morning and evening, 

 to feed and wash themselves, which they appeared to enjoy exceed- 

 ingly. I placed some meat minced very fine in the water to try to 

 feed them, so as to send them alive to Europe, as I considered the 

 manner of feeding them an important preliminary step to ascertain. 

 In their natural state they evidently feed in water. Just before I took 

 them out in the evening they had burrowed to the bottom of the box, 

 among the straw, very warm and comfortable, and they were cuddled 

 close together. 



On the third morning I found them much tamer, and, instead of 

 diving down immediately they were placed in the water, they floated 

 upon the surface. The female would permit me to look close to her 

 little twinkling eyes ; her ears were always much dilated, and she 



