Lepus Magellanicus, _Lesson et Garnot_, Zoologie du Voyage autour du
Monde de la Corvette, La Coquille.
“A black variety of the domesticated species, which was turned out on
these islands by the earlier colonists, has been considered, but with
some hesitation, by M. Lesson, as a distinct species. He has called it
_Lepus Magellanicus_, and has given the following specific
character,—‘_Pilis omnino atro-violaceis, albis passim sparsis:
auriculis fuscis, capite brevioribus; maculâ albâ naso, interstitio
narium, menti, gulæ, frontique._’[46] In the specimens preserved on
board the Beagle, the form and position of the white marks neither agree
with M. Lesson’s description, nor with each other. In one there is a
broad white patch on one side of the head, and another on one of the
hinder thighs. The Spaniards employed in hunting wild cattle, (who are
all excellent practical observers) assured me, that the black rabbits
were only varieties of the common gray kind, and they gave the following
reasons for thinking so;—namely, that the two sorts did not live apart;
that the black one had not a different range from the other; that the
two bred freely together, and that they produced piebald offspring. As
the rabbits extend their range very slowly, (not having yet crossed the
central range,) the Spaniards have sometimes carried a few and turned
them out in different parts of the island, and thus they have
ascertained that the black and gray kinds breed together freely.
Bougainville, moreover, who visited the part of the island, where the
black variety is now most common, distinctly states, in his voyage round
the world, that no animal, excepting the great wolf-like fox inhabited
these islands. M. Lesson supposes that the _Lepus Magellanicus_ is found
near the Strait of Magellan; but I inquired of the Indians, who live
there, and they knew of no other ‘conejos’ or rabbits, except the
_Kerodon Kingii_, which no doubt is the animal alluded to by the early
voyagers.”—D.
1. DASYPUS HYBRIDUS.
Dasypus hybridus, _Auct._
“This species seems to prefer rocky and slightly undulating ground, and
hence is common in Banda Oriental and Entre Rios. Azara says it is found
from 26° 30′, to at least 41° south; but, I was assured, perhaps
incorrectly, that the Sierra Tapalguen (37° 30′), where the nature of
the country becomes slightly different, is its southern limit. The _D.
villosus_, _minutus_, and _mataco_, are found at Bahia Blanca, in
latitude 39°. I was also assured that these three species, together with
the _D. hybridus_, frequent the plains near Mendoza, in latitude 33° to
34°.”—D.
2. DASYPUS MINUTUS.
Dasypus minutus, _Auct._
“The northern limit of this species on the Atlantic side of the
continent, is (as I was told by the inhabitants) near the southern one
of the _D. hybridus_, namely, 37° 30′. It is extremely abundant on the
arid plains near the Sierra Ventana, and likewise in the neighbourhood
of the Rio Negro. This species has a range considerably further
southward than any other: I obtained specimens at Port Desire, where,
however, it is far from common, and at Santa Cruz (in latitude 50°) I
saw its tesselated covering lying on the ground. At Bahia Blanca, I
found in the stomach of this armadillo, coleoptera, larvæ, roots of
plants, and even a small snake of the genus Amphisbæna. All the species,
excepting one, wander about by day. At Bahia Blanca, during a morning’s
ride, three or four of the _D. minutus_ generally were met with; but, in
order to secure them, it was necessary to jump off one’s horse as
quickly as possible, otherwise, they would have disappeared by burrowing
in the sandy soil. This species often endeavours to escape detection by
squatting close to the ground, and remaining motionless.”—D.
1. DIDELPHIS AZARÆ.
Didelphis Azaræ, _Auct._
“This species is said to inhabit burrows: it is nocturnal, and is very
destructive to poultry. The body after death possesses a very offensive
odour. My specimen was procured at Maldonado.”—D.
2. DIDELPHIS CRASSICAUDATA.
PLATE XXX.
Didelphis crassicaudata, _Desmarest_, Nouv. Dict. d’Hist. Nat. 2d Ed.
ix. p. 425.
—— —— Mammalogie, p. 257, Species 393.
Microuré troisième, ou Macrouré à grosse queue, _Azara_, Essais sur
l’Histoire Nat. des Quad. de la Province de Paraguay, vol. i. p. 284.
_D. capite brevi; auribus parvis; colore corporis fuscescenti-flavo
subtùs pallidiore; infra oculos flavescente; caudâ crassâ, caput
corpusque, quoad longitudinem, ferè æquante; ad basin corporis
colore tinctâ, dein nigra, ad apicem albâ._
DESCRIPTION.—Head short; ears small, the posterior edge emarginated
near the base, distinctly furnished with hairs; tail slightly
exceeding the body in length, very thick at the base; tarsi small;
fur moderately long, slightly harsh, and somewhat adpressed (much
less woolly than in most Opossums): general tint brownish yellow,
under parts paler; anterior angle of the eye and muzzle brown, the
tip of the chin, and also the tip of the muzzle on either side
whitish; on the cheeks, a little below the eyes, is a patch of
yellow which extends round the angle of the mouth: about one-third
of the tail is covered with fur of the same colour and character
as that on the body; beyond this the tail is black, excepting a
small portion, about one inch in length, at the apex, which is
white; and the hairs are short, closely adpressed, and scarcely
hide the scales which are beneath: the fore portion of each foot
is brown: the hairs covering the ears on the outer side are
brownish, and those on the inner side of the ear are yellow, but
towards the outer margin they are brown. The hairs of the back
have the basal half gray, and the apical half ochreous,
terminating in yellowish brown; on the belly and underside of
neck, the hairs are ochreous, faintly tinted with gray at the
base.
In. Lines.
Length from nose to root of tail 1 3
of tail 10 3
from nose to ear 2 1½
of tarsus 1 5½
of ear 0 6
Habitat, Maldonado, La Plata, (_June_).
The species described by Azara, under the name _Macrouré à grosse
queue_, agrees so perfectly with the present animal, that I have no
hesitation in referring it to the _Didelphis crassicaudata_ of
Desmarest, which is founded upon Azara’s description.
The head of the _Didelphis crassicaudata_ is shorter and less pointed
than in most other Opossums; the ears are unusually small, and the tail
is very thick. In the character of the fur also, this species differs
from most others, the hairs being rather short and somewhat adpressed;
and the soft under fur being very scanty. Upon separating the fur on the
back and sides of the body, numerous young hairs were visible in the
specimen from which the above description is taken, and these were of a
bright rusty red tint; the colouring of the animal therefore would, in
all probability, have been very different after a short time, had it not
been killed. Those observed by Azara varied considerably in their
colouring. The skull is figured in Plate 34. figs. 25. Fig. _d_
represents a _ramus_ of the lower jaw.
In. Lines.
Length of the skull 2 4
Width 1 3
Length of nasal bones 0 9½
—— of palate 1 2¾
Width of palate between the posterior molars 0 5
Distance between forepart of front incisors and forepart of
canine 2 0¾
Distance between forepart of canine and hinder part of last
molar 1 0
Length of _ramus_ of lower jaw (incisors not included) 1 10½
“This specimen was caught at Maldonado: it weighed 14½ oz.”—D.
3. DIDELPHIS ELEGANS.
PLATE XXXI.
_D. vellere longo et molli, corpore suprà cinereo-fuscescente lavalo;
pedibus corporeque subtùs albis, oculis nigra circumdatis,
interspatio cinerescente; auribus magnis fuscescentibus; caudá,
capite et corpore, paulo breviore._
DESCRIPTION.—Muzzle slender and pointed; ears large; tail rather
shorter than the head and body taken together; fur long and very
soft: general tint of the upper parts of the head and body ashy
gray washed with brown; on the sides of the body, especially near
the shoulders, a faint yellowish tint is observable; the lower
part of the cheeks, the throat, under parts of the body and the
feet, are white, with an indistinct yellowish tint; the eyes are
encircled with brownish black, which tint is extended forwards on
to the sides of the muzzle; the upper surface of the muzzle and
the inter-orbital space is pale. The tail is furnished throughout
with minute decumbent hairs, excepting a small naked space at the
tip beneath, of about one line in length; on the upper surface
they are brown, and on the under, they are whitish. The fur of the
upper and under parts of the body is deep gray at the base; on the
lower part of the cheeks, chin, and on the mesial line of the
throat and chest, the hairs are uniform—not gray at the base. The
ears are brown, and to the naked eye, appear naked.
In. Lines.
length from nose to root of tail 4 6
of tail 4 4
of tarsus (claws included) 0 7½
from nose to ear 1 1½
of ear 0 7¼
width of ear 0 7½