304 The N.Z. Journal of Science and Technology. [Jan. 
obtained from dredgings off Cuvier Island, off the Hen and Chickens 
Islands, and in Hauraki Gulf, at depths ranging from 26 to 40 fathoms, 
resulted in the securing of over fifty specimens of C. arachis (Q. & G.), 
some of which are in the Dominion Museum. I also have one obtained in 
beach-drift at Titahi Bay, Cook Strait. As Suter had some of the same 
dredgings from which I obtained these specimens, he probably placed his 
specimens as C. thetidis (Hedley). 
REVIEWS AND ABSTRACTS. 
Report on Australian Opossums in New Zealand, by Professor H. B. Kirk. 
N.Z. Pari. Paper H.-28 , 12 pp., 1920. 
Professor H. B. Kirk was delegated by the Governors of the New 
Zealand Institute to investigate certain aspects of the remarkably success¬ 
ful acclimatization of the Australian opossum in New Zealand. In his 
report to the Hon. the Minister of Internal Affairs he treats his subject 
in a masterly fashion, and judicially weighs the pros and cons of the 
opossum question. 
Concise information as to the damage done to orchards, plantations, 
gardens, forests, and plant sanctuaries is recorded, followed by articles on 
the habits of this animal in its new environment. The economic value 
of the fur trade is discussed, and regulation's for control are suggested, even 
to specifying what kind of traps shall be used. It is surprising to learn 
that the present value of opossum-skins exported from New Zealand 
annually is not less than £15,000, and probably a great deal more. 
In summarized form the author recommends a perpetual open season 
in what he terms “ fruit districts/ 5 with a restricted open season—governed 
by various factors—in other districts where the opossum is found. Another 
recommendation is the stocking of the Great Alpine Range with a new 
brood of Tasmanian brown opossums. It is considered that the damage 
done to New Zealand forests is negligible and is far outweighed by the 
advantage that already accrues to the community. 
Professor Kirk has chosen his words carefully, and deals with the 
evidence in a way that spells thoroughness. It is to be hoped-that all 
acclimatization societies and the community likely to be affected will have 
an opportunity of consulting this report. H. H. 
Report on the Mosquito Investigation earned out in the North Auckland 
Peninsula of New Zealand during the Summer of 1918-19, Part I, 
by David Miller, Government Entomologist. Department oj Health 
Publication No. 3, 38 pp., 7 maps, 33 figs. 
The subject-matter of this bulletin is the less technical portion of the 
results gained in a detailed exploration of the North Auckland Peninsula, 
conducted under the auspices of the Department of Health by Mr. D. 
Miller, the Government Entomologist, a well-known authority on the 
Diptera. The prevalence of mosquitoes which act as intermediate hosts of 
malaria and yellow-fever organisms in countries similarly situated, and the 
return to the Dominion of numerous soldier malaria patents liable to a 
