. Mammals of other lands;. Mammals. MARSUPIALS AND MONOTREMES 317 Of smaller members of the Kangaroo Family, there are some thirty distinct forms, popularly known in Australia as Wallabies, Wallaroos, Paddy-melons, Potoroos, Kangaroo-hares, Kangaroo-rats, etc. The wallabies, which rep- resent the most important group with regard to their larger size and economic utility, number some fourteen or fifteen species, and are distin- guished, with relation more especially to their habitats or peculiar structure, as RoCK-, Brusii- TAiL, and Spur-tail Wallabies, etc. Among- the rock-wallabies the yello
. Mammals of other lands;. Mammals. MARSUPIALS AND MONOTREMES 317 Of smaller members of the Kangaroo Family, there are some thirty distinct forms, popularly known in Australia as Wallabies, Wallaroos, Paddy-melons, Potoroos, Kangaroo-hares, Kangaroo-rats, etc. The wallabies, which rep- resent the most important group with regard to their larger size and economic utility, number some fourteen or fifteen species, and are distin- guished, with relation more especially to their habitats or peculiar structure, as RoCK-, Brusii- TAiL, and Spur-tail Wallabies, etc. Among- the rock-wallabies the yellow footed species from South Australia is undoubtedly one of the hand- somest as well as the largest member of its group, the uniform grey characteristic of the majority of its members being in this instance represented by an elegantly striped and banded form, in which the several tints of brown, yellow, black, and white are pleasingly in- terblended. The successful stalking of rock- wallabies in their native fastnesses entails no mean amount of patience and agility. Although these animals are so abundant in favoured locali- ties as to make hard-beaten tracks to and fro betwixt their rock-dwellings and their pasture- grounds, one may traverse the country in broad daylight without catching a glimpse of a sin- gle individual. One species, about the size of a large rabbit, is very plentiful among the rocky bastion-like hills that border the Ord River, which flows into Cambridge Gulf, in Western Australia. Efforts to stalk examples in broad daylight proved fruitless; but by sallying out a little before daybreak, so as to arrive at their feeding-grounds while the light was still dim, the writer succeeded in securing several specimens. Many of these rock-wallabies are notable for the length, fine texture, and pleasing tints of their fur, their skins on such account being highly esteemed for the composition of carriage-rugs and other furry articles. Of the larger brush or scrub varieti
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