J. A. GrlLRUTH, Gr. SWEET AND S. DoDD 
o 
In the majority of the other “ opossums,” both living and dead, 
there were slight indications of anaemia, such as anisocytosis and 
poikilocytosis, with polychromatophilia, but whether there was any 
connection between these blood lesions and the presence of the anaplasms 
is very doubtful. 
The discovery of these bodies in the blood of a very young “ pouch ” 
embryo of Onychogale frenata 10 cm. long, and of a young three months’ 
old dingo, is of some interest. In the former there were many nucleated 
red blood corpuscles, and in some cases it is difficult to distinguish 
between small nuclei and what might be large varieties of anaplasms, 
but notwithstanding this some cells contain bodies which, in regard to 
all details, are identical with those described as anaplasms. The young 
dingo {Ganis dingo) was born at the Zoological Gardens and had never 
been out of the cage in which it was born. Although the number of 
anaplasms, both free and endo-corpuscular, was extremely few yet their 
nature is undoubted. 
On the whole, from the evidence available, we are inclined to the 
belief that, at least so far as these indigenous forms of mammals are 
concerned, the presence of these bodies, though possibly parasitic in 
nature, has no pathological significance. 
It should be noted that we have not detected any piroplasms in the 
blood of any of these animals. 
The very great similarity between the staining reaction of the 
anaplasms and the nuclei of the normoblasts suggests the possibility of 
their being simply the remnants of the nuclei of normoblasts, which may 
become extruded from the cell. On the other hand, one cannot but be 
impressed by the great difficulty, at times, of distinguishing the 
anaplasm from a coccus. 
Addendum. 
Since writing the above we have had an opportunity of examining 
eight Phascolomys ursinus (the supposed extinct wombat of Flinders 
Island, Bass Straits) and of securing blood smears from each. These 
animals are of various ages, from half-grown upwards, and are in 
perfect health. All were captured quite recently on the Island, four 
having arrived only two days before the blood examinations were made. 
Since arrival in Melbourne they have not been in contact with any 
other animals, having been kept isolated in special quarters at the 
Melbourne Museum. ' 
