to the nearest tree and commenced to climb it, seemingly with great reluctance. I could have captured him with ease.
The natives may not skin the bear. He is roasted whole in his skin. The flesh is said to taste like pork.
The weight of a bear is about forty pounds.
Bandicoot, etc.
The bandicoot (Perameles obesula, P. nasuta, P. fasciata, and P. Gunni)—Menaak (Gippsland), Warrun (Western district), Bang (Yarra)—burrows, and lives on roots. He is either caught in his nest or knocked down with a stick.
The porcupine (Echidna hystrix)—Kowern (Gippsland), Wilanyul (Western district), Ka Warren (Yarra)—burrows in the ground to a good depth. He is got out by digging with a stick, and is speared in the breast. This creature, in proportion to its size, is of enormous strength.
In cooking it, it is usually covered with clay and roasted in its quills. In Gippsland, the fat is severed from the lean and cooked separately.
Amongst other animals eaten by the natives are the following:—
Native dog (Canis Australasiæ)—Ngurran (Gippsland), Purnung (Western district)—the male it is said being named Pipkuru, and the female Nrung-yrreh)—Yearangin (Yarra)—speared or taken when young.
Native cat (large) (Dasyurus maculatus)—Womainte (Western district)—Native cat (common) (Dasyurus viverrinus)—Beathedel (Yarra).
Water-rat (Hydromys Chrysogaster).
Flying squirrels (Petaurista taguanoides), (Belideus breviceps and B. Notatus)—Berring (Western district).
Mice (Mus Novæ Hollandiæ) (Hapalotis conditor, H. apicalis, and H. Mitchelli).
Bats (Molossus Australis), (Pteropus poliocephalus—flying fox), and several small species of Scotophilus.[1]
To these may be added the marsupials Phascogale penicillata and P. Calura (Kutar of natives). These small rat-like marsupials are often confounded with rats and mice in popular estimation, but they are fierce carniverous animals.
Emu.
The emu (Dromaius Australis)—Burri-mul (Yarra), Miowera (Gippsland)—is a large bird, affording a good deal of nutritious flesh. When in an ordinary position, the head is about five feet from the ground. He is very fleet and very
- ↑ The flying fox (Pteropus conspicillatus) is caught and eaten by the natives of North Australia. The flesh is said to be very good. On some of the islands these bats appear in prodigious numbers, and they may be seen flying in the bright sunshine, a thing unusual in nocturnal animals.—Voyage of H.M.S. Rattlesnake, 1852, vol. I., p. 97.
