They Will Also Know That The Kangaroos Are Marsupial Animals;
That Is To Say, The Females Have A Peculiar Pouch For Their Young, Which
Are Born In A Far Less Advanced State Than The Young Of Other Animals.
But
perhaps it is not so generally known that, with two or three exceptions,
such as the dingo or native dog, the platypus, and several species of bats,
the 'whole' of the animals on the continent are marsupial.
The brains of
this species are very small, and they sadly lack intelligence, in which
respect they exhibit a wonderful affinity to the aboriginals who live by
their capture.
[ILLUSTRATION - GROUP OF KANGAROOS.]
Of kangaroos there are more than thirty different kinds, but the English
are now so well acquainted with this curious animal that it needs no
description. There are two things about it, however, that I may with
propriety here point out - viz., the use of the pouch, and the various
ways in which the kangaroo is serviceable to the settler. The average size
of the ordinary female kangaroo is about six feet, counting from the nose
to the tip of the tail; and, marvellous though it may appear, the young
kangaroo, at its birth, is but little over an inch in length, having a
vague kind of shape, certainly, but otherwise soft, semi-transparent, and
completely helpless. Now the pouch comes into use. The little creature is
conveyed there by the mother's lips, and immediately attaches itself to one
of the nipples, which are retractile, and capable of being drawn out to a
considerable length.
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