COMMON WOMBAT.
A burrowing animal about the size of a small pig.
Of the three known species, the Common Wombat of the South and Eastern Australian States is the largest, attaining to a length of as much as 3 feet. The colour of this form is subject to considerable variation, being sometimes yellow, yellow more or less mixed with black, or completely black. Albinism, as in the kangaroos and phalangers, is of apparently rare occurrence. The hair, while coarse, is less so than in the Tasmanian species. What is known as the Hairy-nosed Wombat, inhabiting South Australia, is intermediate in size between the common and the Tasmanian varieties; its most distinctive features are the soft and silky character of its brownish hair, and its longer and more pointed ears. The coarseness of the hair of the Tasmanian species has been previously referred to; in colour it is most usually a dark greyish brown, while the ears are small and rounded.
The flesh of the wombat is somewhat esteemed for food, being regarded by some as equal to pork, and much resembling it in flavour. The predilection of tame specimens for milk is very strong, and it has been recorded of one animal that it was not only in the habit of seeking out the milk-pans and pushing off the covers in order to drink the contents, but afterwards of taking a bath in what was left.
Photo by E. Landor] [Ealing.
HAIRY-NOSED WOMBAT.
A form peculiar to South Australia.
A remarkable habit has been accredited to the wombat which invites scientific investigation. It is said to be capable of sustaining life for an abnormally long period under water, and that when in the course of its travels it meets with a pond or river it does not attempt to swim, but, deliberately entering the water, walks along the bottom, and so emerges on the opposite bank.
The animals of Australia living in not very remote geological times included a near ally of the wombat which equalled a tapir in dimensions.