FLESH FOOD FROM MAMMALS. 73 



The flesh of the hare kangaroo {Lagorchestes leporoides) 

 is delicious ; in fact Mr. Kreft says it yields some of the 

 best meat he ever tasted. 



The wombat {Phascolomys wombat) is another Aus- 

 tralian marsupial, which sometimes weighs 140 lbs. The 

 flesh is said by some to be not unlike venison, while 

 others compare it to lean mutton. 



The flesh of the taguar or great flying phalanger 

 (Petaurisia taguarioides) , a native of Australia, is said to 

 be very good, and as the animal is a tolerably large one, 

 it is a favourite article of diet among the white and 

 black inhabitants of the country. It is, however, so 

 extremely difficult of capture, that without the assist- 

 ance of native aid, the white man would seldom be able 

 to make a dinner on this creature.* 



The oil which can be obtained from a fat wood chuck 

 {Arctomys monax, Lin.) has some value, and when rightly 

 killed the meat is relished by some as food ; the Indians 

 consider the flesh of the hoary marmot (A. pruinosus, 

 Pennant) as delicious food. 



Considerable parties of Indians have been known to 

 subsist for a time on the tawny marmot {Arctomys 

 Richardsonii, Sabine) when the larger game is scarce ; 

 their flesh is palatable when they are fat. 



The flesh of the Hudson's Bay squirrel, or red 

 chickaree {Sciurus Sudsonius, Pennant), is tender and 

 edible, but that of the male has a strong murine 

 flavour. 



Among the squirrels which are eaten are the fox 

 squiiTel {Sciurus cinereus), the gray squirrel {S. caro- 

 linensis), the California gray squirrel {8. fossor), the 

 tuft-eared squirrel {S. aberti), and the flying squirrel 

 {Sciuropterus volucella). In the San Francisco market 

 squirrels sell at 3s. to 4s. the dozen, and wild rabbits at 

 7s. to 8s. per dozen. The flesh of the squirrel is said to 

 taste like that of the rabbit, but more juicy. 



All the rodents are eaten by the natives of Australia, 



* itoatledge's " Natural History.'' 



