Chironectes Illiger, 1811

Ghiraldi, Luca, Carmignotto, Ana Paula, Tosetto, Vera, Ingleby, Sandy & Eldridge, Mark D. B., 2021, Revised catalogue of monotremes and marsupials in the historic mammal collection housed at Museo Regionale di Scienze Naturali of Torino, Italy, Bonn zoological Bulletin 70 (1), pp. 1-14 : 6-7

Genus Chironectes Illiger, 1811

WATER OPOSSUM Chironectes minimus (Zimmermann, 1780) (LC)

MZUT T428 ( MACUT 7718 ) ; skull; unsexed ad.; Brazil; 24/IX/1914; donation by Alfonso Bovero .

Remarks: Professor Alfonso Bovero (1872-1937) was an Italian medical doctor. In 1912 he moved to Brazil where he got the chair of anatomy and histology at the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery of São Paulo Universi- ty. He was also the founder of the Anatomy museum of the São Paulo University. Genus Didelphis Linnaeus, 1758

WHITE-EARED OPOSSUM Didelphis albiventris

Lund, 1840 (LC)

MZUT T429 (1386); mount; unsexed ad.; Luque, Para- guay, VIII/1893; Borelli expedition ;

MZUT T429 (MACUT 3731); partial skull;

MZUT T430 (1387); mount; unsexed ad.; Luque, Para- guay, 1893; Borelli expedition ;

MZUT T430 (MACUT 3508); partial skull;

MZUT T431 (1899); ethanol; unsexed juv.; Corrientes, Argentina; 1893; Borelli expedition ;

MZUT T432 (2769); mount; unsexed juv.; Argentina, 1928; donation by Principe di Piemonte;

MZUT T433 ( MACUT 10035 ) ; skull; unsexed subad.; Brazil; 05/V/1921; donation by Alfonso Bovero .

Remarks: The specimens MZUT T431 and MZUT

T433 were undetermined, MZUT T433 is not reported in

the MACUT catalogue.

BRAZILIAN COMMON OPOSSUM Didelphis aurita Wied-Neuwied, 1826 (LC) MZUT T434 (338); mount; unsexed ad.; near Rio de Ja-

neiro ( Brazil); 1839; Antonio Caffer expedition; MZUT T434 (MACUT 338); skeleton;

MZUT T435 (MACUT 7736); skull; unsexed ad.; Bra-

sil; 15/V/1919; donation by Alfonso Bovero.

Remarks: In the MZUT catalogue the specimen MZUT T434 was reported as Didelphis albiventris , but since it presents dark face and ears, it was redetermined as D. aurita . The MZUT T435 was undetermined. See also the skull measurements in Table 1.

BLACK-EARED OPOSSUM Didelphis marsupialis

Linnaeus, 1758 (LC)

MZUT T436 (694); mount; unsexed juv.; Suriname; 1845; purchased by G.A. Frank;

MZUT T437 ; skin; unsexed ad.; Vinces , Ecuador; IX/1897; Festa expedition (voucher number 93) ; MZUT T438 ; skin; female ad.; Vinces , Ecuador; IX/1897; Festa expedition (voucher number 109) ; MZUT T438 ( MACUT 4666 ); skull ;

MZUT T439 (1425); mount; unsexed ad.; Punta de Sa- bana, Darien, Panama; 1895; Festa expedition ;

MZUT T439 (MACUT 3777); skull;

MZUT T440 (MACUT 3628); skull; female ad.; Darien ( Ecuador); 1896 Festa expedition;

MZUT T441 (MACUT 7733); skull; unsexed ad.; Brazil; no date; donation by Alfonso Bovero.

Remarks: The specimen MZUT T436 was identified

as Marmosa murina , but it was redetermined as Didel-

phis marsupialis due to its dorsal dark pelage, with long

white guard hairs, extending well beyond the base of the

tail, which is large and bicolored in the distal portion.

The dark face and black ears also points to this species.

The specimens MZUT T437 and 438 was undetermined

and not reported in the MZUT catalogue. The specimen MZUT T439 was undetermined.

The specimen MZUT T440 was identified as Chironectes minimus , but the morphological qualitative and quantitative characters of the skull lead to redetermination as D. marsupialis (see Cerqueira & Lemos 2000; Voss & Jansa 2009). See also the skull measurements in Table 1. The skull MZUT T440 was undetermined.

ANDEAN WHITE-EARED OPOSSUM Didelphis pernigra J.A. Allen, 1900 (LC) MZUT T442; skin; unsexed ad.; Ibarra, Ecuador,

XII/1896; Festa expedition (voucher number 67); MZUT T442 ( MACUT 4678 ); partial skull; MZUT T443 ; skin; unsexed subad.; Quito , Ecuador ,

XII/1896; Festa expedition (voucher number 69); MZUT T443 ( MACUT 4667 ); skull .

Remarks: All the skins were undetermined and not reported in the MZUT catalogue. The skulls MZUT T442 and 443 were undetermined.

VIRGINIA OPOSSUM Didelphis virginiana Kerr, 1792 (LC)

MZUT T444 (331); mount; unsexed ad.; North America; 1823; donation by Gaspeare Deabbate;

MZUT T445 (MACUT 321); skeleton; w.d.;

MZUT T446 (MACUT 337); skull; juv.; w.d.

Remarks: Gaspeare Deabbate was the General Consul of the Sardinian Kingdom in Philadelphia (Pennsylvania, USA).