THE  ORNITHORHYNCHUS  PARADOXUS. 
247 
The  Ornithorhynchus  -which  I  had  thus  succeeded  in  obtaining  alive  and  uninjured, 
was  placed  in  a  cask,  with  grass,  mud  (taken  from  the  river),  and  water,  and  every- 
thing that  could  make  it  comfortable  under  existing  circumstances.  It  ran  round  its 
place  of  confinement,  scratching  and  making  great  efforts  to  get  out ;  but  finding  them 
useless,  it  became  quite  tranquil,  contracted  itself  into  a  small  compass,  and  soon 
became  buried  in  sleep.  At  night,  however,  it  was  very  restless,  and  made  great  efforts 
to  escape,  going  round  the  cask  with  its  fore  paws  raised  against  the  sides,  and  the  webs 
thrown  back,  and  scratching  violently  with  the  claws  of  the  fore  feet,  as  if  to  burrow 
its  way  out.  In  the  morning  I  found  the  animal  fast  asleep,  the  tail  being  turned  in- 
wards, the  head  and  beak  under  the  breast,  and  the  body  contracted  into  a  very  small 
compass  :  sometimes,  however,  its  position  when  asleep  is  with  the  tail  as  usual  turned 
inwards,  the  body  contracted,  and  the  beak  protruding.  The  animal  uttered,  when 
disturbed  from  its  sleep,  a  noise  something  like  the  growl  of  a  puppy,  but  perhaps  in  a 
softer  and  more  harmonious  key.  Although  quiet  for  the  greater  part  of  the  day,  it 
made  efforts  to  escape  and  uttered  a  growling  noise  during  the  night. 
I  found,  by  measurement,  that  the  distance  of  the  entrance  of  this  burrow  from  the 
water's  edge  was  five  feet :  it  was  on  a  moderately  steep  bank,  abounding  with  long 
wiry  grass  and  shrubs,  among  which,  and  concealed  by  them,  was  the  opening  of  the 
subterranean  dwelling.  From  the  judgment  which  I  have  been  enabled  to  form  from 
the  examination  of  this,  as  well  as  of  several  other  burrows  of  these  animals,  I  do  not 
imagine  that  the  natives  have  ever  seen,  or  that  any  one  could  see,  (except  in  a  state  of 
confinement,)  the  young  ones  in  the  act  of  sucking  the  mother  ;  for  in  the  tedious  pro- 
cess of  digging  their  habitations,  the  old  animal  is  disturbed,  and  either  endeavours  to 
escape,  or  actually  succeeds  in  escaping,  long  before  the  termination  of  the  burrow  is 
attained.  I  could  not  observe  any  heaps  of  earth  near  the  burrow,  nor  can  I  form  any 
opinion  how  in  the  process  of  excavation  the  animal  disposes  of  the  loose  mould.  May 
we  be  permitted  to  suppose  that  the  animal  carries  away  the  earth  collected  during  the 
excavation,  in  order  that  the  heap  which  would  otherwise  be  formed  may  not  point  out 
the  situation  of  the  burrow  ?  A  similar  instinct  is  found  among  several  insects,  as  in 
the  Mason  Wasp  and  Carpenter  Bee  ;  and  why  not  in  this  animal  ? 
This  burrow  ran  up  the  bank  in  a  serpentine  course,  approaching  nearer  to  the  surface 
of  the  earth  towards  its  termination,  at  which  part  the  nest  is  situated.  This  is  suffi- 
ciently large  to  accommodate  the  old  animal  and  its  young.  No  nest  had  yet  been  made 
in  the  termination  of  this  burrow,  for  that  appears  to  be  formed  about  the  time  of  bring- 
ing forth  the  young,  and  consists  merely  of  dried  grass,  weeds,  &c.,  strewed  over  the  floor  , 
of  this  part  of  the  habitation.  The  termination  was  of  the  form  shown  in  the  following 
sketch,  and  measured  one  foot  in  length  by  six  inches  in  breadth.  The  whole  extent  of 
the  burrow,  from  the  entrance  to  the  termination,  I  found  by  actual  measurement  to  be 
twenty  feet.  The  burrows  are  situated  above  the  usual  river  height,  but  do  not  appear 
to  be  above  the  extensive  floods  of  the  river  which  frequently  take  place  during  the 
