Western Range, Tasmania . 
125 
April. There are two other fish taken in the Tasmanian 
streams, the black fish and trout: the former is of 
good flavour, and sometimes weighs from 8 to 10 lbs.; 
the other is very different from the trout, and is small. 
In some of the rivers lobsters are caught of the weight 
of from 6 to 8 lbs. The platypus sometimes becomes 
entangled in the nets of the fishermen, and then breaks 
through, and the fish thus escape likewise. 
At a hut on Lake Arthur 1 saw a native tiger, or hyena 
( Thylacinus cynocephalus ), about half grown, and recently 
captured. The animal was secured by a chain fastened to 
a tree without any protection from several dogs that were 
at the hut, yet none of the latter interfered with it. The 
Thylacinus is far more common in some parts of the 
Colony than in others, and commits occasionally great 
havoc among the lambs. It is a cowardly creature, and, 
notwithstanding its formidable row of teeth, may be 
killed by a dog half its size. The largest I have met 
with measured three feet seven inches from the nose to 
the insertion of the tail, and one foot six inches in height 
at the shoulder: but it has been obtained somewhat 
larger. The colour is a light brown with black bands 
across the back gradually tapering to a point at the 
belly, and of a deeper black in the male than the female. 
It makes a peculiar noise, sometimes resembling the 
growl of the common tiger, at others the bleating of a 
lamb. The stock-keepers say it hunts the kangaroo by 
scent. It is said to be stupid and indolent; but this is a 
mistake. I have reason to believe it seldom has more 
than two at a birth, for only one instance came under 
my observation of three. In this case, when the mother 
was killed, the young were found to adhere so firmly to 
the nipple, that it had to be cut, and the mouths of 
the young were then forced open. They lived about two 
months in a room, and were then found dead in the 
