Four shark species in Australian waters were found with skeletal deformities. Deformities were similar across three species with large scoliotic, lordotic and kyphotic bends of the vertebral columns. The cause of these deformities is currently unknown.1999 The Fisheries Society of the British Isles

The diet and feeding habits of the epaulette shark, Hemiscyllium ocellatum, were investigated through stomach content analysis. Five groups of prey items were found. The index of relative importance showed worms and crabs to be of greatest value at 51.3% and 40.1% respectively. The three minor prey groups were shrimps (7.7%), small fishes (0.7%) and amphipods (0.3%). Epaulette sharks tend to be crepuscular, although feeding bouts may occur at any time. They appear to be opportunistic predators, using olfaction and electroreception in prey capture. This species appears to be an important benthic predator in the reef flat environment on Heron Island Reef.

Foot areas of a wide range of kangaroos, wallabies and rat-kangaroos were measured from fresh material and museum specimens. The areas of the plantar pads scaled according to the predictions of geometric similarity. The terminal claw areas of digits IV and V scaled with a lower than predicted exponent, re¯ecting functional demands of different species. The pressure that these marsupials exert on the ground during quiet standing is proportional to (body weight) 0.35 , and is considerably lower than those exerted by ungulates. Hopping kangaroos exert pressures proportional to (body weight) 0.37 . The pressures exerted by medium and large macropods are comparable to those of galloping ungulates. The ®ndings support the commonly held belief that introduced grazing animals may cause greater mechanical disruption of the soil surface, leading to increased rates of soil erosion, than Australia's indigenous grazing fauna.

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