234 



THE YOUNG NATURALIST. 



Germany, about 1730, have taken possesion 

 of our Island, and almost entirely exterminat- 

 ed the real native black rat, which is now 

 either extinct, or very nearly so. The 

 common rat or domestic mouse occasionally 

 vary to cream colour and white. Mr. 

 Bignell once sent me a black mouse from 

 Plymouth. In most of the rodents the fore 

 legs are considerably shorter than the hind 

 legs, so that the animal goes by leaps and 

 bounds, like the hare and rabbit. 



13. MARSUPALIA (Lat. jnarsupium, a 

 pouch). — This order is so called on account 

 of a pouch or pocket formed by a fold of 

 the skin in the abdomen of the female. 

 Unlike other mammals, the young of the 

 Marsupalia are brought forth before they 

 are fully developed, and are then trans- 

 ferred to this pouch, where they remain 

 fixed to the teat of the mother until their 

 growth is sufficiently advanced to permit of 

 a more independent existence. These ani- 

 mals are confined to Australia and America. 

 In Australia they are very numerous both 

 in number of species and individuals. The 

 Great Kangaroo is the largest of this class, 

 the male attaining a length of 8 feet from 

 nose to tip of tail. The fore legs are very 

 short and the hind ones long and strong. 

 They are hunted for the sake of their flesh 

 and also for the skins. They live on vege- 

 tation and frequent plains. 



In America these animals are represented 

 by the Opossums, v/hich differ considerably 

 in habits from the kangaroos. They climb 

 trees, and swing from bough to bough by 

 means of their long prehensile tails. Some 

 of the species have webbed feet and can 

 swim well. They feed upon herbage, fruit, 

 small animals and birds— the latter they 

 surprise when at rest during the night. 

 They are also very destructive to poultry, 

 it being difiScult to rear chickens in any 

 part where the opossum is numerous. 



The Wombat is a native of Australia, a 



short, dumpy, tailless, burrowing animal, 

 and is a vegetable feeder. 



14. MONOTREMATA (Gvk. monos, sin- 

 gle ; trema, opening) . — This order only con- 

 tains the Echidna and the Duck-billed mole, 

 both Australian animals of very peculiar 

 structure. These animals have some of the 

 characteristics of birds, and seem to be a 

 natural connecting link between that class 

 and the present one. The name of the 

 order is given in allusion to the fact that 

 these animals have but a single vent as in 

 the birds. The jaws are without teeth and 

 terminate in a bill similar to that of the 

 duck. The eyes are small ; they have 

 no external ears ; and the feet terminate in 

 five claws, which are broadly webbed. 

 They live on the margins of lakes and 

 rivers ; they swim well, and excavate long 

 burrows in the steep banks. 



BRITISH MOTHS. 



By John E. Robson. 



The Genus HEPIALUS. 



One or two additional notes of interest 

 have reached me since my paper on this 

 subject appeared. 



Valleda var. Gallicus. Mr. Mosley writes 

 that the " females of this variety are much 

 larger than the females of the type, some of 

 them been as large as HumuU." My own 

 observations do not quite confirm this. My 

 own series which has been selected from a 

 considerable number of specimens, contains 

 six females of the type expanding from i 

 inch 9 lines to i inch 11 lines ; and four of 

 the variety expanding, from i" 9"' to 2" i". 

 This large specimen of Gallicus is the only 

 one I have seen decidedly larger than 

 females of the normal form. I would be 

 glad to hear from any who has examples 

 measuring more or less than the dimensions 



