WARD’S NATURAL SCIENCE BULLETIN. 
T 
THE FLYING FOX OF AUSTRALIA. 
Where the bee sucks there suck I ; 
****** 
There I couch when owls do cry. 
Ariel’s Song. 
During the Autumn months, or from January 
to the close of March, the dwellers on the coast 
line of Victoria are regularly visited, in greater 
or less numbers, by a nocturnal depredator in the 
shape of the Papuan Vampire Bat, locally known 
in this country as the Flying Fox. This gigantic 
Bat has a body 11 inches in length, and measures 
about 10 inches in girth, just below the shoulder 
or wing joint. The head, belly, and the two 
hind legs are clothed with dark fur or hair, picked 
out and interspersed .with silver-grey ; but around 
the neck and upper portion of the breast, this is 
enlivened by a broad band of burnt sienna, deep 
and bright in the males, though of a paler tinge 
in the females. The wings are divided into four 
joints, or compartments, and are similar in shape 
and general appearance to others of the same 
family; but in the case of an adult male of this 
species, they measure no less than 3 ft. 9 inches 
from tip to tip, and about 7 inches in their greatest 
width, when only naturally extended. Deeply 
hollowed and ribbed, they appear when in the 
above position, much like a section of a spread 
umbrella. From the second or shoulder joint of 
either wing, projects a claw two inches in length, 
wdiich serves tne animal in the place of fore-arms 
or hands, and' enables it, when required, to grasp 
a bough and travel along it. 
The visitations of this member of the “Black 
Watch,” though not always seen, are soon felt and 
duly appreciated by the owners of most of the 
fruit gardens and orchards that may happen to 
lie along his line or route; for, although he cares 
not a fico for the fig, yet is his appetite great for 
the apple, and piquant for the pear, he is also 
partial to the plum, and has a most peculiar pen- 
chant for the peach ; and the garden or orchard 
that possesses these and other fruits is pretty 
certain to have meddlers to boot and those of 
the most vile character, in the shape of a 
posse of Flying Foxes seeking what they may 
devour and destroying much more. For it ap- 
pears to be a royal rule with these beasts when 
on a frugivorous foray, to take but two or three 
bites out of any kind of fruit before either pur- 
posely or by accident, it is thrown to the ground, 
and consequently, the ravages they commit are 
far more than commensurate with their appetite, 
great as that usually is. 
The influx of Flying Foxes into the Lake Dis- 
tricts (Gippsland Lakes, Victoria, Australia), was 
much greater during the past season than has 
been known for many years; at times the night 
air was full of them. During their visitation 
many of the Eucalyptic and all the Jarra trees 
were in bloom. For the honey that lay concealed 
in the blossoms of the latter trees, the Flying 
Foxes, equally with the Parrots, showed a great 
predilection; hovering round and flying from 
tree to tree, they fed on it in troops all night 
long, until it was expended, and then, only then, 
left the neighborhood. Their usual mode of 
flight when traveling, is by a steady, slow, surg- 
ing flap of the wings, which owing to their con- 
cavity, produces at each beat a hollow humming 
sound; but when occasion suits they can soar and 
skim, and dart, and “ drink the air before them,” 
after so merry a fashion as to render their back a 
delectable place for the daintiest and most vola- 
tile of Ariels. On alighting in a tree, which is 
accomplished by a few short sudden flaps of the 
wings, they grasp a bough by claws of the hind 
leg, and then hang pendant; further progress 
along the bough being aided by the use of the 
hooked claws on the shoulder of the wings above 
mentioned. Hanging pendant by one leg, is 
always the one position in which these winged 
mammals rest or sleep by day. I could not find 
one of their temporary homes, or daily resting 
places, if there were any in our immediate 
neighborhood; such a place, however, was this 
year discovered in a gully leading into the Snowy 
River, about 35 miles from the Lakes. There 
Flying Foxes hung all day long pendant from 
the boughs of the trees, by hundreds and by 
thousands, like so many bunches of black grapes. 
A friend of mine, who visited the spot a month 
after it had been vacated, told me that the atmos- 
phere in the immediate neighborhood was, even 
then, rank with the fcetid vapor left by these 
animals. 
The great abiding home of the Flying Fox in 
Australia, lies at a place called Vakandale, near 
Clarence Town, on the Williams River, in New 
South Wales, and is thus graphically described 
by the Rev. R. W. Vanderkiste, in his work en- 
titled “ Lost, but not forever.” “ Let the reader 
picture an enormous bowl. Let him stand on its 
grassy edge and gaze down into the huge green 
gulf. All before him, all beneath him, all 
around him, on every side,— depth, height, 
breadth, all are trees, trees, trees, one vast arbor- 
etum. Gum trees prevail— red gum, white gum, 
blue gum. Just on the borders of this hollow is 
a beautiful skirting of grass trees. This shrub 
consists of a thick black stem; over this a boss of 
long grass, and a few stout towering bulrushes 
rising from the centre — wild looking and pic- 
turesque in the extreme. The Flying Foxes, the 
great Papuan Vampire Bat, have their home 
everywhere in this abyss. They hang literally 
far thicker on every side, on every branch of 
every tree, than grapes on a fruitful vine. Were 
they not extremely light, notwithstanding their 
size, the trees could not bear their weight; indeed 
boughs often do break down. To speak of thou- 
sands or of tens of thousands of huge Vampire 
Bats, would be the very feebleness of language, 
so far as any attempt to calculate them is con- 
cerned. My companions on the visit were of the 
same opinion, and we literally moved and sec- 
onded, and carried unanimously, amid some 
merriment, on the edge of the gulf, a resolution 
to use the term “myriads of myriads, ”in speaking 
of the tenants of this solitary den. While we 
sat near the edge of the gulf to sketch, our com- 
panions descended into it and stirred up the 
inmates. The air became thick with them, like 
the locusts of fall, “an exceeding great army.” 
The noise of their long flapping wings was like 
distant thunder, their voices commingling in 
strange chorus.” “A Bushman.” 
The readers of the above interesting life pic- 
ture of the Australian “Flying Fox” or giant 
Fruit Bat will recognize the ready and pleasant 
pen of our Hunter Naturalist from the Lake dis- 
trict of Victoria. 
AN ABELE-BODIED INSECT. 
The Guard of an English railway carriage re- 
fused to allow a naturalist to carry a live hedge- 
hog with him. The Traveler, indignant, pulled 
a turtle from his wallet, and said: “Take this, 
too;” but the guard replied, good naturedly; 
“Ho, no, sir. It’s dogs you can’t carry, and dogs 
is dogs, cats is dogs, and ’edge ’ogs is dogs, but 
turtles is hinsects.” — Anon, 
NOTES. 
In the “Seal Islands of Alaska” Mr. Elliott 
suggests that the stones found in the stomach of 
Seals are swallowed as a remedy for the worms 
with which they are so much infested. That 
this can hardly be the case is shown by the oc- 
currance of these pebbles in the stomachs of 
Seals not troubled with Ascarides. While we 
await a more plausible reason we will suggest 
that they may be swallowed to aid in grinding up 
the bones of fishes. 
By a most unaccountable oversight, we ne- 
glected to mention sooner the occurrence of the 
Echidna in New Guinea. It is well known that 
a new genus and species (Acanthoglossus bruynii ) 
has been discovered there, but we have never 
seen Echidna hystrix credited to New Guinea. 
While at Cooktown, Australia, Professor Ward 
secured a living specimen that had been brought 
direct from Port Mousby by the missionary 
steamer Ellaryowan, thus establishing the fact 
that the Echidna hystrix is a native of New 
Guinea. 
What did publishers do for Zoological illustra- 
tions before the days of Brelmi ? This conun- 
drum is suggested by the fact that since the ap- 
pearance of Brehm’s natural history every one 
has drawn upon it freely. Wood and Cassell 
abound in his illustrations, the coming Standard 
Natural History (S. E. Cassino & Co.) has laid 
him under contribution and scientific periodicals 
are to a greater or less degree adorned with his 
cuts. 
Still these cuts are so good that we do not 
wonder they are so often borrowed, although a 
ri va l_again a German work — has just appeared 
in the shape of Spechts and Vogts Mamalia. 
The illustrations to this work are superior to any- 
thing of the kind which have yet appeared, sur- 
passing even those of Wolf, and it is a pity that 
we cannot have a good translation of it. 
Speaking of books brings to our mind a little 
Japanese work on aquatic animals. While the 
text is all Greek to us yet we can appreciate the 
general goodness of the numerous cuts, although 
in one or two cases where the artist has drawn 
from hearsay and on his imagination the result 
is something* wonderful to contemplate. Such 
for example is the picture of the Walrus which 
is worthy of Gesner. The book sells in Japan 
for about thirty cents. 
One of our correspondents writes that there is 
nothing strange about the change of hue in the 
Dolphin, and that it would be far more singular 
if he did not change color while dyeing. 
NOT JUST NOW. 
“ Grafton N. Y. Dec. 18-1883. 
Prof. Ward, 
Sir — Do you wish to engage the assistance of a 
collector of Geological and Metalic compositions 
of the Structural Formations of the Earth — 
including Fosils and precious stones — with a 
decription of value and natural clasification by 
analogy. Terms moderate, no risk. 
Edmund Lewis.” 
Miss Brown Finds Some Quartz Crystals. 
kanses nov 4th 83 
sir i have some rock and a few Diamond stone 
which i wish to sell i doo not wish to exchang 
them as i could get nothing any more of a couri- 
osity i wish to noe if you bye sutch if you doo 
please anser this and i will send them in a register 
package i has a ring of glitring diamond that our 
men say is worth a good Deal of money bee that 
as it may their noe one here that buyes sutch I 
have one rock weigh allmost one pound these ar 
all rel nise yurs with fespect h a ward 
the a Dosia brown 
^ P °- 
Catalogue of North American Birds’ 
Eggs just issued; enumerates 446 species and 
varieties, all now on hand. Price, 10 cents. 
