22 PHYSICAL FEATURES ETC. 
half a century ago. This region is filled with ruins both ancient and modern, but of 
the former very few of any size remain. Some of the ranchos have, however, been 
re-peopled and most of the birds have been obtained in the vicinity of the clearings. 
At Yok Jonat Ku there is a large forest where the trees are high and the ground 
comparatively open; here the magnificent turkey Meleagris ocellata is still to be found. 
At one time this bird was distributed all over the peninsula, but owing to the depre- 
dations of the Indians, who esteem it highly as an article of food, it is now almost 
exterminated. 
Lagartos is a sea-port town at the mouth of the river, or more properly an arm of 
the sea bearing the same name, and innumerable streams or—as Dr. Gaumer believed— 
subterranean rivers find an outlet there. The waters are very salt, and in the dry 
season are even more saline than the sea itself. ‘This so-called river is broad and 
shallow, bordered by a dense growth of low bush, behind which he marshes of salt or 
brackish water, and here in June and July thousands of flamingoes in their finest 
plumage were seen by Dr. Gaumer, while swarms of other sea-birds were always in sight. 
The innumerable hosts of mosquitoes which come with the first rain impeded the 
work here, and the intermittent and pernicious fevers render collecting both difficult 
and dangerous. The country generally has no surface water, and the only supply is 
from the Aguadas and Cenotes (Senotes or Jonats), as they are called by the natives. 
Fortunately the Aguadas, which are said to be of natural formation, but which appear 
to have been reconstructed by the ancient Indian races, are very numerous; they 
consist of a deep excavation in the earth, sometimes circular in form, but giving the 
idea of having been at one time quadrilateral, and from fifty to one hundred feet in 
diameter. They contain water all the year round, though never of any great depth. 
‘The sides being inclined, they form natural drinking places and are much frequented 
by animals and birds—so much so, that the collector usually obtains a good number of 
specimens in the vicinity. . 
The Cenotes are probably natural openings in the earth with steep walls of limestone 
frequently sixty feet high; they vary in size and shape, but always contain clear, fresh 
water. They are believed to be openings to underground rivers, and are frequently 
found in immense caves with a narrow circular mouth ; at the water's edge there is no 
resting-place and no approach except by the steep sides. Vultures, owls, and similar 
birds nest in the walls. The caves are also frequented by swallows, bats, and motmots, 
and reptiles are said to occur in immense numbers. ‘The water contains numerous 
fish belonging to the Siluride, and in the shallow open water-holes near the coast 
there is said to be another species belonging to the same group, but Dr. Gaumer 
was, unfortunately, unable to capture a specimen. ‘The distribution of these Siluride 
confirms the belief that underground rivers in Yucatan do exist. 
A very interesting description of the climate (in 1878-1879) is given by Dr. Gaumer *, 
* See Boucard, P. Z.8. 1883, pp. 434-462. 
