A STUDY OF THE CHAMELEON I DARK CLOUD AND T-ASSOCIATION .3. NEAR-INFRARED PHOTOMETRY OF IRAS-SELECTED FIELD STARS

We present the results of a programme of ground-based near-infrared (JHKL) photometry for 28 IRAS-selected sources in Chamaeleon I unassociated with previously known members of the pre-main-sequence population. Ground-based data are combined with IRAS results (including those from the Serendipitous Survey data base) to investigate the nature and evolutionary status of the sample. A search for highly reddened background stars was unsuccessful, but four previously unrecognized young embedded stars were identified, of which one (11057 - 7706) may still be in the accretion phase. We also extracted Serendipitous Survey data for optically selected members of the T-association, and report IRAS identifications for several which do not appear in the Point Source Catalog. The total number of young stars in Chamaeleon I detected as point sources by IRAS is now 36. Surprisingly, this total includes only 57 per cent of the optical T Tauri stars, a success rate similar to that observed in the Taurus-Auriga clouds. IRAS does not provide a complete census of young stars in nearby dark clouds.