TROPICAL NATURE IN COLOMBIA 



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constitute an important part of the flora. In some swamps there was a 

 slender stemmed plant which had little white air bladders to keep it at 

 the surface. 



The jacana. a rail-like bird, is admirably adapted to live in tropical 

 swamps. The greatly elongated toes enable this bird to walk with ease 

 over the floating vegetation. Both sexes have a spur on the front of each 

 wing which they use in fighting. A flock of jacanas is a beautiful sight 

 as it alights, for every bird stretches its yellow-tipped wings as far 

 upward as possible before closing them. Another swamp bird was a 



Giaxt Cactus and Desert Trees. 



species of tree-creeper which built a long bottle-shaped nest, which was 

 constructed of thorny twigs in low shrubs. The eggs were placed in a 

 little enlargement at the closed end and the long thorny entrance pre- 

 vented snakes and other predaceous animals from entering. 



The swamp water swarmed with aquatic bugs, beetles, snails and 

 other animals. One large snail always climbed out of the water to 

 deposit its beautiful rose-pink cluster of eggs on the stems of plants. 

 Around the margins of the swamps there were many land crabs, snakes 

 and peculiar engistomatid toads. Tropical swamps constitute an admir- 

 able habitat for many animals. The abundant vegetation and small 

 animals fill the water with an organic network which supports many 

 larger predaceous animals such as fish, herons, ducks, jacanas and snipe. 



