THICK-TAILED OPOSSUM. 
499 
A specimen labelled Dideljihis mustelina in the French 
national museum, hut evidently belonging to the present 
species, is almost of an uniform pale yellow tint, hut slightly 
suffused with brown on the back, and on the upper surface of 
the head; the muzzle is brown, and the same colour surrounds 
the eye; the lips and chin are whitish; the whole of the 
under parts of the body are of a straw yellow, the under 
surface of the neck is somewhat more distinctly tinted with 
yellow; the fore feet and legs are yellowish white; the hind 
feet brownish: about three inches of the apical portion of 
the tail is white ; the middle third of the tail is black. 
Eengger states that occasionally the prevailing hue of the 
upper parts of the body in this animal is brown-red l , and 
that of the under parts, reddish grey. 
From 
Azara. 
r 
Male. 
Female. 
Male. 
IllS. 
Lines. 
Ins. 
Lines. 
Ins. Lines. 
Ins. Lines. 
Length from tip of nose to root 
11 
of tail 
13 
2 
12 
4 
12 
1 
3 
“ of tail ... . 
12 
1 
9 
7 
11 
0 
10 
3 
Circumference of ditto at the root 
3 
10 
2 
2 
2 
9 
“ of the body imme- 
diately behind the 
forelegs ... 
7 
5 
5 
8 
Length from nose to ear . 
2 
li 
“ of ear 
1 
H 
“ of hind foot 
6 
The dimensions in the fourth column are taken from Mr. 
1 I may observe, that upon separating the far on the back of the specimen 
brought home by Mr. Darwin, I perceived that at the time of its death the 
animal was about to shed its fur, and that the new coat would have been of a 
reddish hue, for numerous young hairs of this colour were visible. 
