368 DIDELPHTira!. 



Range that of the only species. 



Habits. Aquatic ; feeding on fresliwater iaseots and crustaceans. 



1. Chironectes minimns. 



Petite Loutre d'eau douce de Cayenne, Buff. Hist. Nat., Su^. iii. 



p. 159, pi. xxii. (animal) (1776). 

 Lutra minima, Zimm. Geogr. Gesoh. ii. p. 317 (1780) ; Bodd. Elench. 



Anim. p. 168 (1785). 

 Mustela (Lutra) paiaguensis and guianensis, Ken\ lAnn. An. K. 



pp. 172 & 174 (1792). 

 DidelpMs memina, G. Ouv. Tabl. EUm. p. 126 (1798) ; E. Geoff. 



Cat. Mm. p. 146 (1803). 

 Lutra aaricovienna, Shaw, Gen. Zool. i. pt. ii. p. 447 (1800). 

 Lutra memmiua, Desm. N. Diet. SS. N. (1) xxiii. p. 503, xxiv. 



p. 19 (1804). 

 Chironectes minimus, lU. Prodr. Syst. Mamm. p. 76 (1811) ; GKeh. 



Sdug. p. 706 (1859) ; Lyd. Cat. Foss. Mamm. B. M. v. p. 289 



(1887); Jmt. Cat. Ost. Legd. Mus. p. 302 (1887). 

 Chironectes variegatus, III. Abh. Ak. BerL\%xi, p. 107 (1816) ; 

 ~ .. . ~ s Ichr. ~ 



Schinz, Cuv. Thierr. i. p. 253 (1821); Wagn. Schr. Sdug. 



iii. p. 54 (1843), v. p. 260 (1855) ; Schinz, Sun. Mamm. i. p. 612 



(1844) ; Wferh. N. H. Mamm. i. p. 632 (1846) ; Wagn. Abh. 



Ah. Munch! y. p. 157 (1847) ; Cabanis, Sehomo. Reis. Brit. Guiana, 



iii. p. 778 (1848) ; Gerv. Casteln. Am. Sud, Mamm. p. 101, pi. xx. 



fig. 3 (teeth) (1855) ; id. S. N. Mamm. ii. p. 286 (1856) ; Burm. 



Erldut. Faun. Bras. p. 74, pi. ix. (animal), and pi. xi. figs. 3 & 4 



(skuU) (1856) ; Gerrard, Cat. Bones Mamm. B. M. p. 140 (1862) ; 



Frantz. Areh.f. Nat. xxxv. p. 318 (1869) ; Sdater, P. Z. S. 1871, 



p. 702 ; Schleg. Dierent. p. 161 (1872) ; Brehm,.Thierl. ii. p. 562 



(1880) ; Alst.Biol. Centr.-Am., Mamm. p. 201 (1881) ; Natt. Peh. 



Bras. Sdug., Vei-h. z.-b. Wien, xxxiii. Anh. p. 118 (1883) ; Flow. 



8f Gars. Cat. Ost. Coll. Surg. ii. p. 750 (1884) ; Sidebotham, P. Z. S. 



1885, p. 6 (myology). 

 Chironectes palmata, Cuv. It. A. i. p. 174 (1817) ; Temm. Mon. 



Mamm. i. (Introd.) p. xxiii (1827) ; Gray, Griff. Cuv. An. K. t. 



p. 191 (1827) ; Kaup, Thierr. p. 238 (1835) ; Less. H. N. Mamm. 



tCompl. Buff.) V. p. 366 (1836) ; id. N. Tabl. R. A., Mamm. p. 187 



(1842) ; Hens. Abh. Ah. Berl. 1872, p. 121. 

 Chironectes yapock, Desm. Mamm. i. p. 261 (1820) ; id. Diet. Sci. 



Nat. xlvii. p. 400 (1827) ; Less. Man. Mamm. p. 214 (1827) ; 



Schinz, Nat. Abhild., Sdug. p. 174, pi. Ixvi. (animal) (1827) ; OgSb. 



P. Z. S. 1836, p. 56 ; Waterh. Cat. Mamm. Mus. Z. S. p. 64 (1838) ; 



id. Jard. Nat. Libr., Mamm. xi. p. 112, pi. iv. (animal) (1841). 

 Chironectes memina, F. Cuv. Dents Mamm. pp. 75 & 252 (1826). • 

 Didelphis palmata, Geoff. J. B. Fisch. Syn. Mamm. p. 266 (1829). 

 Didelphys (Chironectes) palmata, Burm. Thieve Bras. i. p. 133 (1864). 



Water Oposstjm. 



Size about as in Didelphys opossum. Fur very thick, close and 

 woolly, a few rather longer straight hairs intermixed with it. 

 General colour greyish white, marbled with deep brown. Ehina- 

 rium with a short backward extension on the top of the muzzle. 

 Ears large and rounded, their anterior basal projections almost 

 obsolete and their metatragus very smaU. Facial bristles very 



