56 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



ground, and supported on the feet and wrists only. The tail is 

 curved downwards and forwards, and the interfemoral membrane 

 pressed against the belly. The fore limb is spread considerably, 

 but the phalanges with their connecting wing-membrane are 

 tightly closed and folded back along the lower arm. In ascending 

 a curtain or picture-frame, the claws on the thumbs are brought 

 into use, and the tail, instead of being curved beneath the body, 

 is then extended backwards, with the tip pressed closely against 

 the surface of the object up which the Bat is climbing. For the 

 time being it is analogous to the stiffened retrices of a Wood- 

 pecker or Tree-Creeper. 



Any instinctive dread which Bats may have of man disappears 

 quickly in captivity, but the Noetule is exceptionally fearless. 

 Within a few minutes of their capture, I took two of the Bats 

 singly from among their struggling fellows in the bag, and, holding 

 them in one hand, offered mealworms with the other. So cramped 

 were they that they could not move their limbs, but they seized 

 and devoured the insects with the utmost sang froid. On the 

 same evening others were climbing about my arms and neck 

 without any signs of fear; and the old female which I had for 

 several weeks used habitually to clamber up my arm as it rested 

 on the table, and snuggle against my neck. 



Before settling down to sleep after it has fed, the Noetule, 

 like other Bats, goes through a somewhat elaborate toilet. The 

 wings and interfemoral membrane are thoroughly cleansed by 

 licking, and the fur of the whole of the body is scrupulously 

 combed, the sliaip claws of the toes being well suited for the 

 purpose. During the process the Bat frequently sucks its toes, 

 the moisture serving doubtless to keep the beautiful golden fur 

 sleek and clean. No one who has watched a Bat clean itself, as 

 it hangs suspended first by one foot and then the other, can fail 

 to be struck by the creature's suppleness and agility. 



In another respect this species resembles all the Bats I have 

 kept in captivity. It never attempts to pick up food which it has 

 accidentally dropped. It is true that when running about the 

 table a Bat may encounter a half-eaten moth or mealworm, which 

 it will seize and devour, but this is tantamount to finding a fresh 

 insect altogether. If, however, a fragment of beef or a decapi- 

 tated moth is dropped, and lies on the table immediately beneath 



