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Animals Of The World: Sperm Whales Dolphins Toothless Animals Ant Eaters Armadillos Pangolins Aardvark Pouched Animals Kangaroos Phalangers Wombats Monotremata More Articles About Animals |
( Originally Published 1936 ) The Wombats are the most rodent-like in form of all the marsupials, the head being like that of a beaver, although the legs and feet are singularly bear-like. The tail is short, almost wanting. They have five toes on each foot, but the first toe on the hind feet is very small and without a claw, the other four being connected by a web. Wombat (Phascolomys mitchelli) This animal is common in Australia. It is nocturnal, living in very long burrows during the day, and coming out at night to feed on grass and other vegetable substances. The fur, is short, thick, and woolly, brownish-grey above, and whitish on the under surface of the body. See Plate 40, Fig. 168. It grows to a length of about three feet. Misled by the name, the explorer De Rougemont figured a flight of " Wom-Bats " in the narrative of his Australian adventures. |