THE ZOOLOGIST 



No. 671.— May, 189.7. 



BIOLOGICAL NOTES ON NORTH- AUSTRALIAN 

 MAMMALIA. 



By Knut Dahl, 



Of the Zootomic Instit. University of Christiania. 



Engaged on a collecting expedition, on behalf of the 

 University Museum of Christiania, to Africa and Australia 

 (from 1893-96), I spent nearly two years travelling in the 

 northern and north-western portions of the latter continent, in- 

 vestigating the little-known fauna of this region. Special interest 

 was devoted to the mammals, and, besides amassing a good 

 collection, my work in this branch was rewarded by the dis- 

 covery of several species of interest, some -of which are new 

 to science. A descriptive list of the mammals, by Professor 

 R. Collett, will shortly be published in the ' Proceedings of the 

 Zoological Society of London.' 



The following short notes descriptive of the life and habits 

 of these little-known animals may, I venture to hope, prove of 

 some value to readers who take an interest in the zoology of 

 tropical Australia. 



The hardships of travel have undoubtedly put their limitation 

 on my investigations, and no one is more aware than myself how 

 superficial they are, or how little insight they give the reader 

 to the real animal life in the virgin forests of the north. Never- 

 theless I feel it my duty to commit them to paper, hoping that in 

 course of time I may be able to place a further and more detailed 

 account of my travels before the public. 



Zool. 4th ser. vol. L, May, 1897. p 



