Marvels of the Universe 



169 



incisors, or cutting teeth of the lower jaw, which are shaped hke the teeth of a comb. 

 That they serve some important end none can doubt ; but no one has yet been able to throw 

 anj' hght on this problem. No other animal has similar teeth. It has been suggested that 

 they are used for cleaning the fur, but this is hardly probable. One has been seen, when 

 eating a banana, to suck it through its front teeth, using them as sieves ; but since unripe 

 fruit, and especially unripe cocoanuts, are eagerly devoured, this peculiar fashion of disposing 

 of a banana cannot be regarded as the sole end and aim for such a remarkable modification of 

 the lower incisors. In this connection it is interesting to note that the outer incisor of the 

 giraffe has a notch in its cutting edge, which is used by the animal in tearing off leaves 

 from slender twigs, the twig being drawn over the notch in the tooth. These teeth of the 

 Cobego may, again, be compared to the " pectinated " or " comb " claw of many birds, 

 which also is of unknown function. 



That the Cobego is certainly one of the most contradictory of all animals we have already shown; 

 but an additional illustration of 

 this fact is afforded by the eyes ; 

 for though the animal is nocturnal, 

 these are not large, as is the general 

 role among nocturnal animals. 

 But then, it may be pointed out, 

 the bat is nocturnal and might 

 almost be said to be eyeless ! 



Although we have spoken of 

 the Cobego, it must be pointed 

 out there are two species. The 

 larger, which forms the subject of 

 our illustrations, is Galeopithecus 

 volans; the smaller, G. Philip- 

 pinensis, is, as its name implies, 

 confined to the Philippines, and 

 differs from its larger relative chiefly 

 in point of size and the form of the 

 cutting teeth of the upper jaw. 



THE GIANT-TAILED 

 MOTH OF MADAGASCAR 



In previous pages we ha\e given 

 particulars of the Giant Silk-moth 

 of North America. The subject of 

 the illustration on this page, and 

 one of our coloured plates, is an 

 even larger insect. It is a silk pro- 

 ducer, like the American species, 

 and the silk is declared to be very 

 good ; but whether it can be spun 

 is, perhaps, another matter. Ex- 

 periments in this direction are be- 

 ing made at the present time, the 

 insect being bred for the purpose. 



THE GIANT-TAILED MOTH OF MADAGASCAR. 



This great moth measures eight inches from wing to wing, while its length, 

 to the tip of its slender tails, is nine and a half inches. It has been suggested 

 that these tails allow the moth a chance of escape when seized by any insect- 

 eating bird, who, in their pursuit, would snatch at these easily-broken append- 

 ages, while the moth itself would escape uninjured. 



