Marsupials and Monotremes 



359 



TllK TyPIC.M. PlIALANliEltS. 



Tho ty[)ical I'HAT.AKiiKlis, nr Oihissiims, 

 as they aro fiuniliarly known 1 liriiiit^'luiiil 

 Aiistvalia, incliule a wry cdnsidcralilc iiinnhcr 

 of representatives, ranging- in size Ireiu 1lia.t 

 of a small mouse to lliat of :i riill-grewn 

 cat. All ari^ essentially arlioi'eal in ilieir 

 habits, feeiling principally on ilie lea\'es ami 

 flo\yers of the various gums. They are lor 

 the most part strictly no(tin-nal in Iheir 

 habits, and ma,h'(" their homes and rcliring- 

 places during the day in the hollow tnmks 

 and lim]:)s that are of such abLuidaut occur- 

 rence in tlie periodically lire-swe[)t AtistraJian 

 forests. Almost all th(^ larger S[iecies are 

 notable for tho length, thickness, and ex- 

 quisitely fine texture of their fur, a circum- 

 stance for which they are consefjuently laid 

 under heavy penalties fjr the sake of their 

 pelts. The island colony of Tasmania, in the 

 extreme south, with its colder climate, as 

 might be anticipated, ])ro(lu<'es the finest 

 qualities of these furs, iliat of the 15i.A('K or 

 Sooty Ofossum, which is peculiar to the island, 

 being most highly prized. The length and 

 furry character of their in many inslanccs 

 prehensile tails also form a conspicuous feature 

 of tliis group). Nature, in fact, a]i])arently 

 distributed caudal material so over-lilierally 

 among these marsupiaJs that the little koala 

 had to make shift without. 



The group of the I'lialanger ]<amily 

 popularly known as Flyino-SQUIRHKLS, or more correclly as 

 universally admitted to include som<' of ih(^ most heaulitnl of 

 structure, so far as their px'culiar so-call<'(l "Hying" irieelia,iiisin is conccnicd, iliese animals 

 coincide in a remarkalile manner with the true tlying-sijuirrcis, lirioiiging 1.) (lie i;,,driit Order, 

 indigenous to the Asiatic and Aineiican Continents. In neil her inslaiice is tlieio High!, in 

 the true sense of the terin, similar to that of birds and bals, but (lie loi-e and hind limlis ar(^ 

 connected by a parachute-like inembrane, wliicli, (juI si I'clclied when the animal leaps bom ( ree 

 to tree, buoys it up and enables its owner f,o travei'se, in a siraiglil, ami graihially de,-:eonding 

 line only, very considerable distances. 



The smaller squirrel-like form common lo the soul li-ea,s(<'rii dishii-ls ol Ansli'alia, and 

 on account of its predilection for sweel s commonly known as the Sr(,M[-,s(jnn!i!i':i., makes a 

 most charming little pet. J^or tlu^ most part addid ed lo sloep, and impat imt .-il, bring ilisi nrbed 

 during the day, towards sundown it, waki'S up, and is liill of IVolir. One sm-li cxanipli' was 

 the writer's travelling companion for a coiisiderablo inlia'vaj in W'oslcrn /\n,-;l ralia,. While 

 remaining pjacked conveniently awa,y in a sinaJI box I lironglioni, i.\u- day, it wa.s a.rcustomed 

 to enioy the liberty of wliatever apartment ils (jwner occnpiod in (lie cM'ning and (liroiighout 

 the riiebt returning of its owrj accord (o i(,s sleeping-box wi(li the a|)|iroacli of da,\vn. On 

 one exce^jtional occasion, however, Mas(er 'J'irjy, as (his individiiaj was naineil, was missing in 

 the morning from liis accustomed ciib, and a prolonged search and examination of every 



A I 



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t I'l.V l,N(!-l'nAI,ANO i:u. 

 njy |H,n. wliilJiov:,, <■. 



"l,'i'l\(l-i'iiAi,AN(;i':iis, is aJrnost 

 livini'' maininals. In ex(ernal 



