Family IV. Peramelidæ.
(Bandicoots.)
In their general structure the Perameles,—or Bandicoots, as they are called in Australia,—furnish a link between the Opossums and the Kangaroos, evidently approaching the latter in their form and particularly in the development of the hind-quarters. They agree with the former, however, in having a simple stomach, and in having ten incisors in the upper jaw. Insects have been found in the stomachs of some of the species, while others, as P. lagotis, (Reid) seem to confine themselves to vegetable food. In general in this family, the pouch is said to have the opening backwards, the reverse of what obtains in the other Marsupialia. In the species just named, however, it opens anteriorly.
The species are found on both sides of the Australian continent, in Van Diemen's Land, and in New Guinea.
Genus Perameles. (Geoff.)
The head in this genus is lengthened and pointed, and the ears moderate, and well clothed with hair. The inner toes of the hind-feet are rudimentary, and the two middle toes are united by a common skin as far as the nails; in the fore-feet, the outer and inner toes are rudimentary, so that they appear to possess but three anterior toes. The claws are large, solid, and but slightly curved, and are well adapted to the burrowing habits of the animals. The teeth are as follows:—inc. 106; can. 1—11—1; false mol. 3—33—3; mol. 4—44—448.
"The Bandicoots appear to take in Australia the place of the shrews, tenrecs, and other Insectivora in the Old World. . . . . Their general form and contour is rabbit-like, but the muzzle is elongated, narrow, and pointed, the nose advancing considerably beyond the jaw . . . . . In their movements these animals resemble a rabbit; they do not, like the Kangaroo, bound from the hind-limbs alone, but, arching the back, proceed with a saltigrade gait, that is halfway between running and jumping; or rather by a succession of short leaps from the hind to the fore-feet, but not with much speed, nor maintained for a great length of time. The Kangaroos make considerable use of the tail; but in the Bandicoots, it is by no means so important an organ, though it assists them in sitting upright, an attitude usually assumed when eating, the fore-paws being brought into use as holders, like those of the squirrel. With these paws they scratch up the earth in search of roots and insects, and it is said that the potatoe crops of the colonists in some districts suffer from their incursions. They are readily tamed, and in a few days become reconciled and familiar . . . . The form and characters of its teeth would lead us to suppose that the Bandicoot fed almost entirely upon insects, and similar creatures; and M. Geoffrey even imagines that it may use its long snout for the purpose of rooting up the earth, like a pig, in search of worms and grubs. The colonists, however, assert that these animals are chiefly if not purely, herbivorous; and that the principal part of their food consists of roots, which they dig up with their sharp and powerful claws. In the neighbourhood of human habitations they frequently enter into the granaries, and do as much mischief to the corn as the rats and mice of our own country." [1]
The prettiest species known is Gunn's Bandicoot (Perameles Gunnii, Gray); which is rather larger than a rabbit, with short ears and tail; the general colour yellowish brown, with several alternate pale and black bands across the loins and rump.
Mr. Gunn's account of this pretty animal confirms the statement above alluded to of the vegetable food of the genus. He observes, "They are numerous everywhere (in Van Diemen's Land), they burrow in the ground universally, as far as I have seen, and live principally on roots. I knew one gentleman's entire collection of Cape bulbs,
GUNN'S BANDICOOT.
principally Bambianeæ, eaten by them, and I suffered considerably myself, having lost some entire species of bulbs through these animals."[2] On this, Mr. Waterhouse inquires, "May not these animals destroy the bulbs to get at insects with which they are infested?"