AMERICAN MUSEUM NOVITATES Published by Number 1305 the Amewican MUSEUM of NATURAL HISTORY December 29, 1945 New York City

AMERICAN MUSEUM NOVITATES Published by Number 1305 THE AMEwIcAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY December 29, 1945 New York City

RESULTS OF THE ARCHBOLD EXPEDITIONS. NO. 55 NOTES ON THE SQUIRREL-LIKE AND MOUSE-LIKE POSSUMS (MARSUPIALIA) BY G. H. H. TATE

Due to the indefatigable work of the form of the teeth was employed only to Archbold New Guinea Expeditions, good distinguish between Dactylopsila and Pha- series of many rare species hitherto lacking langer. It seems better now to attempt a from, or scarcely represented in, the collec- classification based upon apparently less tions of the American Museum have been readily modified characters such as those obtained. Notable among them is the of the teeth and the skull. fine representation of the New Guinea The basic phalangerine pattern of denti- dormouse possum, Eudromicia caudata. tion comprises three well-developed in- Other material reported on includes the cisors, a canine, three premolars, the last Australian collections made by the late (fourth) by far the largest (p2 never de- Henry C. Raven and by Gabriele Neu- veloped), and four molars. The opposing hiuser. lower teeth are one large central, chisel- One new form of Dactylopsila trivirgata shaped incisor, one large premolar (the is described. fourth), between which stand a varying All but one of the members of the two number of minute, nearly obsolete teeth, phalangerid subfamilies included in this and four lower molars. To this pattern paper are referable to the Phalangerinae; Phalanger, Trichosurus, Dactylopsila, Dac- Schoinobates, the greater possum glider, tylonax, Petaurus, Gymnobelideus, and belongs to the Phascolarctinae. Eudromicia conform. Acrobates, Distoech- urus, and Cercartetus are aberrant in vari- Subfamily Phalangerinae ous ways. In.Acrobates the two upper Eight genera, excluding Phalanger, re- premolars anterior to p4 are double- cently reviewed (Tate, 1945a), and Tricho- rooted and quite as large as that tooth, surus (not treated here) are included in and ps is as large as or larger than P4. this family. Three, Dactylopsila, Dacty- This condition may be secondary or it may lonax, and Gymnobelideus, are squirrel-like; demonstrate retention of a primitive state Petaurus and Acrobates function like lost in other genera. In Distoechurus, as flying squirrels; Eudromicia, Cercartetus, pointed out earlier (Tate and Archbold, and Distoechurus are mouse-like. 1937, pp. 388-390), p3 is the dominant Jones (1923), perhaps as a matter of premolar, pl being only slightly smaller, convenience, based his two primary divi- but p4 very much smaller. In the lower sions of the Phalangerinae upon the form jaw a single premolar, probably p3, is set of the tail-whether distichous or not. off from the molars by a diastema that The presence or absence of gliding mem- perhaps formerly accommodated a minute branes was obviously held to be secondary. P4. In addition, m4 are absent. In Yet both are interrelated functionally and Cercartetus the premolar system does not are undoubtedly highly plastic charac- differ much from the supposedly typical ters. Other external characters dwelt pattern, p4 being somewhat reduced but upon by him included the degree of neither pl nor p3 enlarged, but m4 are development of the toe pads and again the obsolete. Of the three, Cercartetus is character of the pelage of the tail. The the least aberrant. Distoechurus and 2 AMERICAN MUSEUM NOVITATES [No. 1305

Acrobates are not only markedly differen- sufficiently recognized that the Australian tiated; they have taken quite different marsupials include many single relicts of evolutionary courses. The distichous char- extremely ancient lines. acters of the tails of Distoechurus and Acrobates are actually widely different, the THE PYGMY POSSUMS OR POSSUM MICE fringe of hairs of the former being stiff, like Of the two genera of naked-tailed pygmy the webs of a feather, while those of possums, Cercartetus (= Dromicia) and Acrobates are relatively soft (Jones, 1923, Eudromicia, recognized Jy Iredale and pp. 188-189). Moreover, though Acrobates Troughton (1934), the first is typified by. has gliding membranes, Distoechurus, con- C. nanus of Tasmania, the second by E. trary to published statements, has none. macrura of Queensland. A few years ago I determined this point in New Guinea by I studied the type specimens of both in examining a fresh-killed specimen (A.M. London as well as those of most other N.H. No. 105938). A final marked differ- species and forms.' ence is to be noted in the mammary ar- Iredale and Troughton have established rangement. Jones gives the nipple count the fact that Dromicia Gray is antedated as four in Acrobates; in Distoechurus there by Cercartetus Gloger. The type of each is a single nipple, median in position. is Cercartetus, in which m4 are absent, is Phalangista nana.- In January, 1916, derived directly from Eudromicia. Mj6berg proposed Eudromicia for his Turning next to the remaining phalan- macrura, a Queensland species in which m4 were present. The retention of these gerine genera, Eudromicia, Dactylopsila, teeth was adduced by him as a character and Phalanger can be taken as relatively distinguishing Eudromicia from Cercartetus generalized types. Only the extreme tip (= Dromicia). In April of the same year of the tail is prehensile in the first two. Matschie proposed Dromiciola, with type The first is mouse-like, the second squirrel- lepida of Tasmania, which Iredale and like, the third lemur-like. Dactylopsila, Troughton consider equal to Eudromicia, by specialization of the fourth finger, and Dromiciella with type nana, a pure produced Dactylonax but is also a close synonym of Cercartetus. relative of Trichosurus (which has fewer Of the two genera, Eudromicia, in which premolars) and, probably, of the rare the number of molar teeth is 4, is the less Gymnobelideus. It also gave rise to the specialized, while Cercartetus (= Dromicia) flying phalanger, Petaurus,- by the develop- in which m' is not developed, is the more ment of gliding membranes. The genus specialized. Apparently Cercartetus is de- Phalanger has carried scansorial adapta- rived from Eudromicia. The geographical tions to an extreme by great development range of Cercartetus includes the southern of the prehensile function of the tail, parts of eastern and western Australia, enlargement of the claws, and a general and Tasmania, of Eudromicia the whole of slow-down of its rate of movement. The New Guinea, the northeastern coastal number of young is reduced in Phalanger strip of Australia, and Tasmania. Cer- to one or two. cartetus nanus has developed the ability It may be worth while to note that to store fat during the southern winter taxonomic balance is still far out of adjust- months in the temporarily swollen basal ment in the marsupials. On the one hand portion of the tail, in the same way as do the scale-tailed flying squirrels, Anoma- of and the South lurus, of Africa, 4nd the true flying squirrels some species Sminthopsis are both treated as subfamilies (or families) American Marmosa elegans group. of the Sciuromorpha. On the other hand Petaurus, in which analogous specialization GENUS EUDROMICIA has occurred, is still held in a subordinate Eudromicia MJ6BERG, 1916 (January), K. Svenska Vetensk. Akad. Handl., vol. 52, no. 2, position as a genus of the Phalangerinae. p. 13. The same thing holds with Schoinobates Dromictola MATSCHIE, 1916 (April), Mitt. in the Phascolarctinae. It has still to be Zool. Mus., Berlin, vol. 8, no. 2, p. 260. 19451 RESULTS OF THE ARCHBOLD EXPEDITIONS. 55 3

Mj6berg based Eudromicia upon E. the same. In other respects it is very macrura of northern Queensland; Matschie similar, being clearly more closely related founded Dromiciola upon Dromicia lepida to the New Guinea specimen than to from Tasmania. In both generic diagnoses lepida of Tasmania. the presence of m' is mentioned; the relatively large size of P4 iS pointed out by Eudromicia lepida (Thomas) Matschie. I believe, with Iredale and Dromicia lepida THOMAS, 1888, Catalogue... Troughton, that macrura and lepidus are Marsupialia and Monotremata, p. 142. congeneric. Dromicia caudata of New The type of this species, an adult female Guinea, in which m4 are present also, must from Tasmania, is B.M. No. 52.1.15.11, be regarded as a third member of the genus. the body in alcohol, the skull cleaned. The species is very much smaller than Eudromicia caudata (Milne Edwards) E. macrura, E. caudata, or Cercartetus Dromicia caudata MILNE EDWARDS, 1877, nanus. The teeth are approximately equal Compt. Rendus Acad. Sci., Paris, vol. 85, pp. in size to those of C. concinnus. There is 1079-1080. as yet no evidence that E. lepida is able to Material studied since publishing earlier store fat in the basal portion of the tail as (Tate and Archbold, 1937, p. 385) includes C. nanus can. the type specimen in Paris, the skull of GENUS CERCARTETUS which was cleaned for me the same year; Cercartetus GLOGER, 1841 (before May), several other specimens in the Berlin Hand- und Hilfsbuch der Naturgeschichte, vol. Museum from the Huon Peninsula (Saru- 1, p. 85. waged); four from the Angabunga River Dromicia GRAY, 1841 (November), in Grey, Journals of two expeditions... in .. Australia, in the Tring Museum; one in the British vol. 2, pp. 401, 407. Museum brought by Shaw Mayer from Dromiciella MATSCHIE, 1916, Mitt. Zool. Mus., Fergusson Island; also a series of 30 speci- Berlin, vol. 8, no. 2, p. 260. mens from the Mount Wilhelmina-Lake Phalangista nana Desmarest is type for Habbema area of Netherlands New Guinea, both Cercartetus and Dromicia; Dromicia 5000-13,000 feet, collected by W. B. concinna Gould for Dromiciella. Richardson and now in the Archbold Cercartetus is chiefly distinguished from collection. These last include 19 specimens Eudromicia by its lack of m'. The sizes of a paler form from the Balim River, 5000 of p4, employed by Jones (1925, p. 97) in feet, and the Bele River, 7000 feet, and 11 his key, serve only to separate concinna of a very dark form from Mount Wil- from nana, gliriformis, britta, and unicolor. helmina, 10,000-13,000 feet. The former series is colored much as typical caudata. Cercartetus nanus (Desmarest) The latter, though easily distinguishable Phalangista nana DESMAREST, 1818, Nouv. by its smoky color, has the skull and di- Dict. d'Hist. Nat., nouv. ed., vol. 25, p. 477. mensions of the body identical to those The type specimen of C. nanus from from lower altitudes. Maria Island, Tasmania, collected by Perron and Lesueur, Paris No. 160 (192), Eudromicia macrura Mjoberg is a juvenal male, so young that m2 are Eudromicia macrura MJOBERG, 1916, K. only partly erupted. The skull was ex- Svenska Vetensk. Akad. Handl., vol. 52, no. 2, tracted from the mounted skull and cleaned p. 4. for me to study, in 1937. Two specimens, Stockholm 5255 and The upper fourth premolar is a compara- 5256, were kindly sent me for study while tively large tooth with anterior and pos- I was in London. Compared with caudata terior cusps; the two anterior premolars (A.M.N.H. No. 104054), from Matsika, are quite small. The bullae are unusually macrura is smaller, and has larger bullae large. and larger anterior and posterior palatal The present color of the badly faded skin foramina. The dental characters and is brownish gray, the underparts dirty dimensions of the teeth are substantially white, with the bases of the hairs gray. 4 AMERICAN MUSEUM NOVITATES [No. 1305

Subspecies of C. nanus have been named I have examined the cotypes from the in South Australia, New South Wales, and Swan River in the British Museum and Victoria. This obviates the need to assume one at the Tring Museum from Preston, that gliriformis, stated by Bell (1829) to southwest Western Australia; also the have come from "Australia," was a mis- type of neillii. labeled Tasmanian specimen. More probably gliriformis will supersede either uni- THE SQUIRREL-LIKE POSSUMS color from Sydney, New South Wales, or britta from South Australia. Dactylopsila trivirgata Although the type of nanus has the denti- The following specimens have been either tion so little advanced that the status of studied in European museums or added to m4 cannot be determined, Iredale and the Archbold collections since 1937. The Troughton have synonymized Dromiciella types of trivirgata, albertisii (= angusti- with Cercartetus, thus indicating their vittis), occidentalis, arfakensis, kataui, belief in the absence of m4 in nanus. Be- picata, biedermanni, melampus, hinden- sides this Thomas (1888, p. 146) had before burgi, and megalura have been examined. him a number of other Tasmanian speci- New material representing known races mens that must have satisfactorily sub- in the Archbold collection comprises one stantiated the molar tooth count for kataui from upper Fly River, four kataui nanus. In the cases of britta and unicolor from south New Guinea, two melampus the describers specifically refer to the molar from the Kokoda Road, north of Port formula, ml_. The skull of the type of Moresby, and one specimen from Hol- gliriformis has the posterior ends of the landia (?), three specimens of picata from toothrows broken off, but has the large- north Queensland. Specimens previously sized teeth of nanus and uniformis. Other- studied include American Museum and wise the presence of m4 in gliriformis is Archbold material from Weyland Moun- not proved. Probably the races of nanus tains, a large series of D. t. kataui, and should be written nanus nanus, Tasmania; several melampus. nanus gliriformis = unicolor, New South It now appears that the specimens from Wales and Victoria; nanus britta, South the Weyland Mountains, formerly referred Australia. by me to D. t. trivirgata, are better con- The name nanus is a misnomer; the sidered as D. t. arfakensis. Although both teeth of nanus are almost as large as those trivirgata and arfakensis have the' hands of Eudromicia caudata and E. macrura. white, the black chin patch is undivided in They are much larger than those of either the latter and in the Weyland Mountains C. concinnus or E. lepida. series. In the type of trivirgata from the Cercartetus nanus alone of the mouse Aru Islands the black chin patch is divided opossums is recorded as storing fat in its longitudinally by a broad white line. tail during the southern winter. Dactylopsila trivirgata infumata, Cercartetus concinnus (Gould) new subspecies Dromicia concnna GOULD, 1845, Proc. Zool. TYPE: A.M.N.H. No. 107203, adult Soc. London, p. 2. Phalangista (Dromicia) neillii WATERHOUSE, male; Lake Barrine, near Cairns, Queens- 1846, Natural history ... mammals, vol. 1, p. land, 2400 feet; collected by Gabriele 315. Neuhauser, December 12, 1937. The This is the only one of the pygmy pos- type, a skin with skull in good condition. sums that has pure white underparts. GENERAL CHARACTERS: A much darker The molars are three only in number, the race of D. trivirgata than D. t. picata, with teeth about as long as, but more com- the pale lines of the back greatly narrowed pressed than, those of E. lepidus. Besides by the broadened dark areas, the blackish giving its well-known distribution in mark of the chin divided by a narrow pale Western Australia, Jones (1925, p. 96) line running from the throat to the middle records it from South Australia. of the lower lip (duplicated only in typical 1!945] RESULTS OF THE ARCHBOLD EXPEDITIONS. 55 5 trivirgata from Aru Islands); the hands Unfortunately it has no skull. The skin and feet white, the underside of the tail, is colored almost precisely like the type; excluding the buff-colored tip, blackish the white chin stripe is.even wider. For brown, washed with buffy. comparison three typical individuals of DESCRIPTION OF THE TYPE: The dark, picata, two from Coen, one from Rocky lined areas of head, back, and limbs are Scrub, are available. These agree with blackish brown, less intensely black than Thomas's description (1908) and with in D. t. picata, the pale stripes grayish Troughton's plate (1941). Dactylopsila t. buff, not white as picata and not continued infumata appears to be as closely related onto the tail (in true picata the buffy to the Aru Islands trivirgata as picata is to white sides and underside of the tail are kataui. continuous with the white dorsal stripes). The underparts are cream buff, the hairs Dactylonax palpator (Milne Edwards) of the median area self-colored along a Dactylopsila palpator MILNE EDWARDS, 1888, width of 10 mm., wider at the chest and Mem. Soc. Philom., Centenaire, Paris, pp. 173- inguinal area and extending down the 177. insides of the arms and legs. On either Since writing my *notes on Dactylonax side of that median area the ventral pelage (Tate and Archbold, 1937) I have had the has gray bases and buff tips which combine privilege of examining the following to give a light buffy gray effect. In true material in European museums: the type picata, on the contrary, the area of self- of D. palpator (Paris Nos. 188, 257c, col- colored hairs may be 30 mm. in width and lected by Laglaize); Berlin No. A22,01, the margining gray band hairs have much Aroa River; five specimens taken by Stein larger and whiter tips. The hairs of the in the Weyland Mountains; and the type metacarpal and metatarsal areas are white of D. p. ernstmayri (Berlin No. 42418, as in typical trivirgata, nQt blackish as in from Jungsaing, Huon Peninsula). The picata. 1938 Archbold New Guinea Expedition The skull appears similar to skulls of obtained seven specimens of Dactylonax D. t. picata except in one small character near Lake Habbema and two south of the which may not prove to be constant: the Idenburg River. form of m4. In the new race the posterior The Archbold series from Lake Hab- half of m4 is wider proportionately than in bema, 2200-2800 meters, consists of four picata, kataui, or melampus, giving it a adult males, two adult females, and one subrectangular instead of a subtriangular juvenal (pouch?) female; that from soath outline. of the Idenburg River, 850-1200 meters, MEASUREMENTS OF THE TYPE: Length of two adult m-les. The tails of* the of head and body, 273 mm.'; tail, 3471; former are much more densely haired than hind foot (s. u.), 461; width of pale dorsal those of the latter, the width of the caudal line at shoulders, 5 mm. (= 10 mm. in pelage being 21/2 inches in the former, picata); skull, condylobasal length, 55.5; 11/2 inches in the latter. The Idenburg zygomatic width, 42.3; mastoid width, specimens match the Stein series from 33.6; length of nasals, 19.5; least inter- Weyland Mountains, 16000 feet. The temporal width, 8.9; depth of zygoma caudal pelage of the juvenal specimen is behind postorbital process, 5.0; teeth, closely appressed to the tail instead of p4-m4, 14.4; crown dimensions. of p4, being erect and spreading as in adults. 2.5 by 2.0; of ml, 3.9 by 3.3; width of A sex character is perceived in the zygoma; anterior loph of m4, 2.2; of posterior loph, its depth just behind the postorbital 1.9 (in picata 2.1, 1.6, respectively). process in the males is from 5.5 to 7 mm., REMARKS: A second specimen of this depending upon the degree of maturity, smoky-colored striped phalanger, A.M. in the females from 4.8 to 5.3. N.H. No. 107204, from Evelyn near Lake The minute middle upper premolar, Barrine, was collected by Miss Neuhauser. usually present in Dactylopsila, is a fluctuat- 1 Made in the flesh. ing character in Dactylonax. It is present 6 AMERICAN MUSEUM NOVITATES [No. 1305 on both sides in five males and one female, The white ring around the wrist in D. absent on both sides in one male and one p. ernstmayri is not important. One of our female. Habbema specimens has the entire lower The number of minute lower teeth be- leg white. tween the large incisor and P4 iS five in one male, four in all the other specimens. Gymnobelideus leadbeateri M'Coy The juvenal (A.M.N.H. No. 109415) has Gymnobelideus leadbeateri M'Coy, 1867, Ann. the flat-crowned i2, the smallest of the Mag. Nat. Hist., ser. 3, vol. 20, p. 287. three upper incisors in the adult state, Originally from the Bass River, Victoria. fully erupted. The canine is partly func- The little that is known about this probably tional, and the minute p3 iS fully in place. extinct species was well discussed by The teeth that are partly through are Brazenor (1933). The generic name is i' i3, p2, p4, and ml. In the mandible, not suitable; Brazenor states that there ii and P4 are partly functional. The four are no flying membranes. tiny intervening teeth, fully functional and polished, are probably used to hold the GENUS PETAURUS mamma. The first two lower molars are Petaurus SHAW AND NODDER, 1791, The just showing behind P4. Both upper and naturalist's miscellany, vol. 2, pl. 60. lower milk premolars have already been Three species are currently placed in shed. Petaurus: P. australis, the large, broad- Elongation of the fourth anterior digit headed Petaurus or "Yellow-bellied Pos- of the juvenal is fully as complete propor- sum-Glider" (Troughton, 1941), P. nor- tionally as in the adults. This is obvious folcensis, the apparently rare, medium- if comparison is made with a juvenal sized "squirrel-glider," and P. breviceps, Dactylopsila. The two basal phalanges the small, rather common "sugar-glider." (excluding the claw-bearing phalanx) To the last the Australian forms longi- measure together 14 mm. in Dactylonax, caudatus and ariel and all the flying 11.5 in Dactylopsila. The basal phalanx phalangers described from New Guinea of the same digit shows even greater con- and its outlier islands appear to be sub- trast, 8.2: 6.2 mm. specifically related. Petaurus norfolcensis In the two juvenals of Dactylonax and and P. breviceps are much more closely Dactylopstla the color pattern shows essen- related than either is to P. australis; tial differences. In the former the paired perhaps their differences are also only sub- white dorsal lines terminate at the rump, specific. their margining black areas converging at Aside froni differences of size and tile the tail to make the tail wholly black, not very easily appreciable differences in above and below, except its white tip. In the external characters of these flying Dactylopsila the paired white dorsal lines phalangers, certain absolute characters are continued onto the sides of the tail to perceivable in the skulls are shown in within about an inch of its black tip. table 1. These two lines are separated dorsally and ventrally by black lines. The dorsal black Petaurus australis line is a continuation of the median dorsal Petaurus australis is sharply differen- black line and is merged distally with the tiated from all other species of Petaurus by black tail tip. The ventral line begins the great breadth of the palate; the un- very narrow, 1 inch behind the vent and, usually great outer width across the canines gradually broadening, also joins the black is approximately equal to the length p4-m4, terminal area of the tail. The ventral and the outer width across ml-1 exceeds surface of the extreme tip of the tail it substantially. The back of the skull is appears not to be prehensile in Dactylonax. correspondingly wide. The paroccipital In all species of Dactylopsila except D. processes descend almost twice as far megalura the tactile area is perfectly as do the rather well-inflated alisphenoid obvious. bullae. The audital meatus is much 19451 RESULTS OF THE ARCHBOLD EXPEDITIONS. 55 7 shorter (from the bulla to the opening of Neuhiiuser from Mount Spurgeon, north- the tube) than in either P. norfolcensis or east of Coen, Queensland. P. breviceps. Of the teeth, p3 are less reduced, and the molars are broad and Petaurus norfolcensis massive. The coronoid process of the This rare "flying-squirrel" is represented mandible seen from the side is broad and in the American Museum of Natural His- somewhat hooked compared with the nar- tory by only three specimens, formerly on row, unhooked, almost pointed coronoid exhibition, from which the skulls have in norfolcensis and breviceps. lately been removed and cleaned. They differ from P. australis by the characters Petaurus australis australis already mentioned, but from P. breviceps Shaw and Nodder their differences, other than those of size Petauru8 australis SHAW AND NODDER, 1791, and the length and fullness of the tail, are The naturalist's miscellany, vol. 2, pl. 60. less appreciable. The principal feature of Typical P. australis is shown by Iredale anatomy by which they can be dis- and Troughton (1934) to have come from tinguished from breviceps is the propor-

TA]BLE 1 P. au8tralis P. norfolcensi8 P. brevicep8 Mastoid width Zygomatic width 76 80-85 =' 85 Depth of paroccipital process i108 = d Depth of bulla 97 100 Length of meatus = 13 A = Zygomatic breadth 20 17 Outer width across c-c Length p4-m4 107 i 78 = 85 Width ml = 45 = 20 , 20 Outer width ml -I Length crown p3 Length p4-ml = 19 14 = 12 Length crown p3 i = = Length crown p4 79 76 67 Length crown p3 Length crown P4 100 70 = 55 Sydney, New South Wales. Troughton tionately smaller degree of reduction of P4 (1941) gives the range as from southern and the greater degree of inflation of the Victoria to southern Queensland, eastern bullae. The close similarity of the pro- Australia. The American Museum collec- portions of the skulls and teeth of these tions include no specimens referable with flying phalangers to those of P. breviceps -certainty to this race. Strangely enough and the marked and important differences the late H. C. Raven, although he obtained from those of P. australis and its northern a fine series of both northern and southern race reginae can scarcely be overempha- Schoinobates, failed to secure a single sized. specimen of Petaurus australis. Petaurus norfolcensis norfolcensis Petaurus australis reginae Thomas (Kerr) Petaurus australi8 reginae THOMAS, 1923, Ann. Sciuru8 (Petaurus) norfo4cen8is KERR, 1792, Mag. Nat. Hist., ser. 9, vol. 11, p. 249. Animal kingdom... of Linnaeus, pt. 1, p. 270. Six specimens of this northern Queens- The type locality of norfolcensis, ac- land race of the yellow-bellied flying cording to Iredale and Troughton (1934), phalanger were assembled by Miss Gabriele is Sydney, New South Wales, not Norfolk 8 AMERICAN MUSEUM NOVITATES [No. 1305

Island. Its range, Troughton (1941) flying phalangers are present on many signifies, includes Victoria, New South outlying islands, including New Britain, Wales, and at least southern Queensland. Goodenough, Aru, Kei, Halmahera. Jen- In northern Queensland the race P. n. tink records specimens from Soek and gracilis replaces it. Mafool in the Geelvink Bay (possibly We have no specimens of this southern equal to biacensis from Biak), and from race in the collections of the American Misol, Bachian, Gilolo and Ternate. Museum of Natural History. Petaurus breviceps breviceps Petaurus norfolcensis gracilis De Vis Waterhouse Petaurus norfolcensis graclis DE Vis, 1883, Petaurus breviceps WATERHOUSE, 1839, Proc. Proc. Linnean Soc. New South Wales, vol. 7, p. Zool. Soc. London, (for 1838), p. 152. 619. Petaurus (Belideus) notatus PETERS, 1859, The type locality of this form is "north Monatsber. Akad. Wiss. Berlin, p. 14. of Cardwell," northern Queensland. Unfortunately the American Museum In the American Museum of Natural of Natural History still lacks material History are two very faded specimens of referable to this southern flying phalanger. this animal, withdrawn from exhibition, I have examined and measured the skin of which are labeled Rockhampton, Dawson the type (there is no skull), B.M. No. River. A third specimen, without exact 55.12.24.78, and the skull of another locality, remains undetermined for geo- specimen from Paramatta, New South graphical race. The skulls of all three Wales, B.M. No. 10.7.16.6, male. The have recently been taken out of the skins type is a short-tailed animal (125 mm.), its and cleaned. hind foot measuring 26 mm. (c. u., 28 mm.). The skull is generally larger than those of Petaurus breviceps either the type of papuanus, or of flavidus Since P. breviceps, the smallest of the or ariel. flying phalangers except the tiny Acro- Concerning the type skin my notes are: bates, was described in 1839, several addi- "specimen dirty. Dorsal stripe faintly tional forms have been made known in visible, slightly more distinct on head. Australia and New Guinea. My present Body color darker gray than in ariel. study of the species of Petaurus makes me Underparts dirty white with gray bases. feel reasonably certain that all of these Tail smoky gray, its distal 40 mm. fuscous. are very closely related to breviceps; it Hands and feet dark gray. The skull is demonstrates that breviceps alone of the reputed to be no. 361 of the collection in three species of Petaurus has reached New the Zoological Society of London." Guinea. Petaurus breviceps longicaudatus The named forms of breviceps and their Longman type localities and ranges, so far as ascer- Petaurus breviceps longicaudatus LONGMAN, tained, are: 1924, Mem. Queensland Mus., vol. 8, abstr., p. ix.

NAME TYPE LOCALITY RANGE breviceps = notatus New South Wales and Victoria Southeastern Australia longicaudatus Mapoon Mission, Gulf of Carpenteria Northern Queensland ariel Port Essington Northern Territory, Australia flavidus Oriomo River South New Guinea papuanus Huon Gulf Forested New Guinea lowlands, and New Britain, etc. tafa Mt. Tafa, 2000 meters Central mountain system of New Guinea biacen8i8 Biak Island

- Besides occurring about everywhere on This form is established by such a brief the mainland of New Guinea between sea description that it barely passes the re- level and 6000 feet, the short-headed quirements of the International Commis- 1945] RESULTS OF THE ARCHBOLD EXPEDITIONS. 55 9

sion on Zoological Nomenclature. I have Petaurus breviceps papuanus Thomas examined two of Longman's cotypes, Petauruw brevicepa var. papuanuw THOMAS, preserved in alcohol, at Brisbane. No 1888, Catalogue.. Marsupialia and Monotre- had been cleaned. were mata, p. 158. skulls They Petaurus (Petaurella) papuanuw papuanus numbered 4291, male, and 4292, female. TATE AND ARCHBOLD, 1937, Bull. Amer. Mus. The head and body measured 153 mm. and Nat. Hist., vol. 73, p. 387. 115 mm., respectively, the tails 187 and In addition to our records given in 1937, 190. The hind foot of the male was 24 several specimens referable to this lowlands mm. This race is thus distinctly longer- race, collected by L. A. Willis, have been tailed than either papuanus or breviceps. received from near the mouth of the Kemp We have in New York a short series Welch River, Papua. from several parts of northern Queensland The provisional assumption is made on collected by Miss Gabriele Neuhauser. the basis of incomplete data that the Several have the tail even longer than flying phalangers of the southeast coast of Longman's cotypes, in others it measures New Guinea are equal systematically to = 160 mm., or even as short ps in flrvidus those of the northeast coast (true or ariel, though not so short as in the papuanus). This may be true for the type specimen of breviceps. Moreover, the whole of the New Guinea lowlands that tails are much more heavily haired than in receive heavy rainfall during most of the flavidus, and all three of our specimens from year. As pointed out under P. b. flavidus the region west of Coen differ by having the yellowish color of the flying phalangers the tip of the tail colored perfectly white of the monsoon grass country may be beyond the place where the basal gray seasonally induced. gives place to fuscous. Whether our material from near Coen and from Rocky Petaurus breviceps flavidus Scrub and Somerset farther north can be Tate and Archbold truly referred to longicaudatus is still Petaurus (Petaurella) papuanu8 flaviduw TATE problematical. AND ARCHBOLD, 1935, Amer. Mus. Novitates, no. 810, p. 25; 1937, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., vol. 73, p. 387. Petaurus breviceps ariel (Gould) Since the original series from the Oriomo Belideus ariel GOULD, 1842, Proc. Zool. Soc. River was reported, a second series of 20 London, p. 11. specimens from the neighborhood of the Wassi Kussa, on the south coast of New The type specimen of this form, B.M. Guinea, has been obtained. These skins 42.5.26.1, an adult female from Port merely confirm previous conclusions that Essington, Northern Territory, has been the majority of the individuals are marked examined. Other material from the Nor- with yellow brown above and have buffy thern Territory seen includes three speci- white underparts. A few, however, are mens from the South Alligator River and grayer. one from Katherine River (all at Tring It seems probable that material from the Museum). Aru Islands (recorded by Jentink), which The dorsal color of the type is light gray, were probably connected with south New almost devoid of the yellow-brown wash Guinea during the last glacial period, often seen in flavidus of south New Guinea. should be referred to flavidus. It is an The underparts are pale self-colored buff. interesting fact that the few specimens The pouch hairs are russet. The middle obtained by the Archbold Expeditions in one of the three upper premolars is peg- the extensive low-altitude grasslands near like and single-rooted. The crowns of Hollandia, the Cyclops Mountains, and, the third and fourth minute lower teeth Lake Sentani, all near the north coast of between the large lower incisor and P4 New Guinea and totally cut off from the are also much reduced-to 0.3 or 0.35 south New Guinea grasslands, are also mm. in length. washed with pale brownish and have. 10 AMERICAN MUSEUM NOVITATES [No. 1305 buffy underparts. This condition may then acters of its premolar dentition. Later I be somatic, the result of exposure to in- had the opportunity to examine and re- tense sunlight or some other environmental mark upon types or topotypes of all Acro- factor. The material from the northern bates (Tate, 1938). area mentioned, though indistinguishable From the fact that in Acrobates the last from flavidus on the basis of color above, molar is obsolete, it follows that this genus is all longer-tailed and to that extent is cannot be directly ancestral to Petaurus. more in agreement with papuanus of the Other specializations in Acrobates include Huon area, New Britain, and the D'En- the subequal sizes of p2 and p4 (in most trecasteaux Islands. I question whether phalangerines p4 iS much the larger, but in these animals are sufficiently distinct to Distoechurus p4 is extremely small); the merit a subspecific name. In any case, only slightly inflated mastoid bulla; the Ulmer's biacensis, based upon a single skin very large posterior palatal openings; the without skull, may be available for them. greatly broadened interorbital region (in- cipient in Petaurus australis). Petaurus breviceps tafa The relative narrowness of the gliding Tate and Archbold membrane of Acrobates is not necessarily Petaurus (Petaurella) papuanus tafa TATE AND a mark of incomplete development; it ARCHBOLD, 1935, Amer. Mus. Novitates, no. 810, p. 1; 1937, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., may be correlated instead with the small vol. 73, p. 387. size and insignificant weight of the animals. Additional material representing this dark-colored mountain race was obtained Distoechurus pennatus Peters by me at Kagi, 5000 feet, on the trail from Distoechurus pennatus PETERS, 1874, Ann. Port Moresby to Kokoda; Kagi is on the Mus. Civ. Genova, ser. 1, vol. 6, p. 303. south slope of the Owen Stanley Range. Two additional specimens of the feather- No specimens were taken by Richardson tailed mouse possum have rather recently in the Balim Valley near Mount Wil- been added to the Archbold collection: helmina. In western New Guinea Stein a female from Kurasimari, Sepik River, took Petaurus only in the lowlands, while 2000 feet, December, 1929; and a second Shaw Mayer's specimens from the Wey- female from Sturt Island, Fly River, land Mountains, reported by Rothschild western Papua, 50 feet, October, 1936. and Dollman without altitude, may also The former is referable to the race neu- have been lowlands specimens. Evidence hdussi, the latter to dryas. is still needed to show that the smoky- The Fly River specimen was interesting hued mountain form occurs at all in Nether- for the reproductive condition noted: a lands New Guinea. single mamma in the forward-opening pouch, placed medially, and a single pouch GENUS ACROBATES juvenal. The central position is analogous Acrobates DESMAREST, 1818, Nouv. Dict. to the centrally placed nipples in the South d'Hist. Nat., nouv. ed., vol. 25, p. 405. American didelphids Marmosa and Mono- Troughton (1941) follows the example of delphis; the absence of paired mammae Jones (1923) in inserting Cercartetus may be either fortuitous or constant. (= Dromicia) and Gymnobelideus, both of The following is quoted from my notes which lack flying membranes, between on the same specimen: "Ears small and Acrobates and Petaurus. All are shown by naked; the interior of the conch bearing the form of their molar teeth to be phalan- tufts of long, very soft hair which projects gerine, not phascolarctine marsupials. laterally. The single juvenal was carried Jones places Acrobates next to Distoechurus in the pouch parallel with the mother's of New Guinea, which also has the caudal body. The mammary gland converged pelage markedly distichous. I have already upon the single median teat placed at the pointed out (Tate and Archbold, 1937) bottom of the pouch near the pubic arch. that Acrobates is not a very close relative The epipubic bones seem to be absent. of Distoechurus, but differs by certain char- Only 5 mm. of the tip of the tail are pre- 1945] RESULTS OF THE ARCHBOLD EXPEDITIONS. 5111 hensile. No trace of flying membranes. (Tate, 1945b) united as subspecies of a Eyes large, probably luminous at night. single species. The geographical analogy The young, with the head very large, be- between the distributional patterns of coming downy on head and neck; the tail S. volans and P. peregrinus is also close. and the hind feet near the fifth metatarsal It is therefore preferable at this time to pigmented. Length of head and body of retain the conspecific status of vokans and pouch young, 45 mm." minor, while pointing out their distinctive The lack of genera closely related to characters. Distoechurus has been indicated earlier From S. v. volans, S. v. minor differs in this paper. sharply by its much smaller size including the toothrows (ml4, 12.2/14.2 mm.; Subfamily Phascolarctinae width of ml, 2.6/2.9); by the lack of a pronounced groove on the inferior surface GENUS SCHOINOBATES. of the bulla exteroposteriorly from the Didelphis volans KERR, 1792, The animal eustachian opening; by its relatively kingdom... of Linnaeus, pt. 1, p. 199. Schoinobate8 LE%sON, 1842, Nouveau tableau larger, more slender paroccipital processes; du regne animal, p. 190. by the much less massive posterior margin Petauroides THOMAS, 1888, Catalogue... of the palate; and by the truncation of the Marsupialia and Monotremata, p. 163. nasal bones posteriorly. In the mandibles The American Museum collection now the lighter weight of the teeth is similarly contains two forms of Schoinobates, the marked (the length of the crown of P4, phascolarctine flying phalangers, currently 2.2/2.9). known as S. v. volans and S. v. minor. Of The skins of the two races differ chiefly the former we have 10 specimens collected by the ashy gray body color, brownish by the late H. C. Raven in New South limbs and ears, and pure white underparts Wales, of the latter 23 taken by the same of minor in contrast to the blackish brown collector on Atherton Tableland, northern body color, tipped with pale gray, blackish Queensland, and seven by Miss Gabriele limbs and ears, and partly gray-based Neuhiiuser at various stations in northern white ventral hairs in volans. In two speci- Queensland (Evelyn, Dimboola, and Mount mens of S. v. volans taken by Raven at Spurgeon). There are two more recorded Ebor, New South Wales, the backs and races of these mammals, S. v. armillatus bases of the ears are white instead of from "southern mid-Queensland" (Iredale smoky, the white extending to, and con- and Troughton, 1934), and S. v. incanus fluent with, the white of the throat. from "South-eastern Queensland." There is no indication of such white areas The skulls of minor and of true volans in the account and plate of the "Black differ from each other to a greater degree Flying Opossum," published by Governor than do the skulls of Pseudocheirus pere- Phillips, from which Kerr's (1792) technical grinus and laniginosus which I recently description was taken.

LITERATURE CITED BELL, T. JONES, F. WOOD 0 1829. Description of a new species of Phalan- 1923. The mammals of South Australia. gista. Trans. Linnean Soc., London, Adelaide, pp. 1-458. vol. 16, pp. 121-128. 1925. A new South Australian dormouse BRAZENOR, C. W. opossum. Trans. Proc. Roy. Soc. 1933. A re-examination of Gymnobelideus South Australia, vol. 49, pp. 96-98. leadbeateri McCoy. Australian Zool., KERR, R. vol. 7, pp. 106-109. 1792. The animal kingdom ... of Linnaeus. IREDALE, T., AND E. LEG. TROUGHTON London, pt. 1, p. 199. 1934. A checklist of the mammals recorded MATSCHIE, P. from Australia. Australian Mus. 1916. Die Verbreitung der Beuteltiere auf Mem., no. 6, pp. 1-122. New Guinea mit einigen Bemerkungen 12 AMERICAN MUSEUM NOVITATES [No. 1305

aber ihre Einteilung in Untergat- 1945b. Results of the Archbold expeditions. tungen. Mitt. Zool. Mus., Berlin, No. 54. The marsupial genus Pseudo- vol. 8, no. 2, pp. 256-309. cheiru8 and its subgenera. Amer. MJ8BERG, E. Mus. Novitates, no. 1287. TATE, G. H. H., AND RICHARD ARCHBOLD 1916. On a new genus and species of mar- 1937. Results of the Archbold expeditions. supials. K. Svenska Vetensk. Akad. No. 16. Some marsupials of New no. pp. 13-20. Handl., vol. 52, 2, Guinea and Celebes. Bull. Amer. TATE, G. H. H. Mus. Nat. Hist., vol. 73, pp. 331-476. 1938. New or little known marsupials: a THOMAS, 0. new species, of Phascogalinae, with 1888.' Catalogue... Marsupialia and Mono. notes for Acrobates pulchellus Roths- tremata. London, pp. 1-401. child. Novitates Zool., vol. 41, pp. 1908. The species of the genus Dactylopsila. 58-60. Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., ser. 8, vol. 1, 1945a. Results of the Archbold expeditions. pp. 122-124. No. 52. The marsupial genus Pha- TROUGHTON, E. LEG. langer. Amer. Mus. Novitates, no. 1941. Furred animals of Australia. Sydney 1283. and London, pp. 1-374.