es = : ——— .
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SS Ae aa a SS
Se ae —— aren i
ee ae LES

 

HYPSIPRYMNUS MURINUS

New South Wales Rat-K

ang-aroo.

 

Poto-Roo or Kangaroo Rat, White’s Journ p- 286. pl

s + p. 286. pl.
Macropus minor, Shaw, Gen. Zool., vol. i. part 11 : 513. vl
Hypsiprymnus murinus, Ul. Prod. Syst. Mamm p aa ee

Potorous murinus, Des ie ic . d His . Na » LOM XXVU ) ¢ b q = 5
I ’ - Ad 1 SCR otk ©) ota I . Mammalocie i ]
| 1 t S { 1 ) 0 slit p. .

and Corr. of Zool. §

Hypsiprymnus setosus, Ogilb. in Proc. of Comm. of Sci.
S0c., part 1. p. 149.

Be Por eek Gin
= Peron, Quoy et Gaim. Zool. de l’Uranie p. 64
’ - O4,

————— myosurus, Ogilb. in Proc. of Zool. Soc part 6 62?
e.. ; - Soc., part 6. p. 62?

—_— (Potorotis) murinus, Waterh. Nat. Hist of Manam li
ee eyes ees ie og WON,

Bettong of the Aborigines of New South Wales ae

 

Da 2oe

| 3 e O
/ 1S > i¢ t ) S ANC 9 e

* y e « . . ral . » . J : 1 . oe : ‘ | |
swampy and damp parts of the brushes of New South Wales that the A Murinys We
Seni 1. Murinus is

Br . a to be found in <
: : i one Pp oe
abundance. ‘The district of [llawarra, Botany Bay, the low scrubs bordering the rivers H M o
fee oye the princi pee es g the rivers Hunter, | ing
and Clarence, are the principal localities in which it may be successfully sought f a
: \ : sought for
Th Eh $212 + . oe ‘ > ae - - 5 5 .
; Lypsiprymnus murinus is one of the very oldest known species of the Australian quadrupeds i
will, in some measure, account for the long list of synonyms assigned to i | I rf ice
: 7 g is sync assigned to it, and the diversity inl
foe ue j g ic e diversity of opinio
ntertain Pee ino its identiivy T : oe
: tertained by zoologists regarding its identity. Mr. Waterhouse, who has carefully investigated the subject
i Ba ae oe eee ewe a s 5° . yect,
as cleared up these difficulties so successfully, that, my own opinion coinciding with his, it wi
1 1 g ) his, it will be as well,

\

perhaps, to transcribe the entire passage :—
66 o Pca sneclesc wac fire seePpihe -
The present species was first described by Hunter under the name Potoroo, or Kangaroo-Rat, in the
oar, 6c Mivitace ae en vo Say er : pe
Appendix to “‘ White’s Journal,” and from the description and somewhat rude figure there given, it would
5 ? 5 ?

|
€

have been difficult to deter 1 hi ; ; ;
etermine to whic > KOS snecjes eee . :
bich of the numerous species of Rat-Kangaroo since discovered, the

GNGNG

Potoroo of White should be referred, were it not that the skull of that animal is still preserved in the
Museum of the Royal College of Surgeons. By the aid of that skull we are enabled clearly to identify the
Potoroo of ‘ White’s Journal” (upon which Shaw founded his Jacropus minor) with aie Eypsiprymnus
murinus of Pander and D’Alton, and with the ZZ. Peron of Quoy and Gaimard, founded upon a skull contained
in the Paris Museum, of which Professor Owen has been so kind as to lend me a drawing.

“Mr. Ogilby states that the animal to which he has given the name of H. setosus, is known in the colony
tis remark no doubt has reference to the Rat-Kangaroo,

GN

ANANE

Wig

of New South Wales by the name ‘ Bettong’ ; and tl
Society, which specimens not only agree with Mr. Ogilby’s

oa
oe

|

so labelled in the collection of the Linnean
description, but also with the animal I identify with the Macropus minor of Shaw.’

The following note was made by Mr. Richter from living examples in the menagerie of the Zoological
Society :—

“Though these Hypseprymn stand as much on the hind legs as
ll as the hind legs in a sort of gallop.
and inoffensive in their manners
Idom using the fore hands to convey
They are very pert ip their attitudes, sitting uj
| s or sharp expiration ; are very quick in

?

“NG

CS 4a Cy ce fy

NAN:

the Bettongia, they ran in an entirely
They also never attempt to

AM. AH Ate

different manner, using the fore as we
kick with their hind legs. They are very gentle
than the Bettongie. They feed like pigs, very sé
mouths, and seemed to be very partial to boiled rice.
wriggling the tail laterally ; express disapprobation by a slight his
ig day or night.”

r surface of the body
1 the shorter fur of
bh white on the surface 5

, and much more stupid
their food to their
> and

3a

Wj

S.COUMM ANAM Y LACHEY

their movements, and equally lively dur
Fur long, loose, slightly glossy, and on the uppe
r hairs being black, anc

of a dusky brown, a tint produced
a pale yellow hue; fur of the
ears short and

by the visible portion of the longe
under surface deep grey next the skin and of a dirty ye
rounded, clothed internally with dirty white hairs; feet brown.

The figures represent both sexes of the size of life.

llowis

Pye} Pe:

e
<

yana

ANGIE