28 bulletin: museltm of comparative zoology. 



a burnt over tract of Butia palms, where beside one of the milky 

 streams we encamped for the night. My mule had given out during 

 the afternoon and was towed into camp tied to the tail of a sound 

 animal. In the forest along the trail I observed a small wild tobacco 

 plant from four to five inches high, which our head camarada termed 

 "fumo dos Bugres." A pair of papagaios flew over the camp at sun- 

 set and a few mosquitoes buzzed about our fire of araucarian knots. 



The Brazilian pine (Araucaria hramliana), when young, resembles 

 in its branching habit the other members of the Coniferae; but 

 it scarcely attains full height before its branches become crowded 

 towards the top by the dropping off of the low ones. An old tree thus 

 presents a clean bole with usually one but sometimes two great whirls 

 of branches at or near the top and recurved upwards. Upon the fall 

 of a dead tree frequently as much as ten feet of the upper extremity of 

 the prostrate trunk is a mass of highly resinous knots which remain 

 undecayed for years after the surrounding wood has disappeared. 

 In the wettest weather a fire of these knots can be quickly made. 

 Along the line of railway in southern Parana the knots are used for 

 fuel on the locomotives, and bins of these combustible, inflammable 

 stores of the araucarian forest are freciuently seen at the railway 

 stations. The young trees when not over four to six feet high present 

 an appearance very unlike the adult form with its smooth bole and 

 palm-like apical whirl of branches with leaves growing in large clusters 

 at the ends of the branches. The young tree is thoroughly covered 

 with broad pine leaves resembling small Cordaites. On the branches 

 these lea^•es point outward and upward, but those on the bole which 

 are still larger bend sharply downward at the point of attachment 

 and present sharp needle-like points to stay the progress of any small 

 climbing mammal which would find equal difficulty in reaching the 

 main stem of the tree by descending one of the branches. This 

 apparent adaptation of the foliage to protection from arborescent 

 animals in the young stage of the plant is a devise the use of which I 

 did not observe, for on account of the nocturnal habits of most of the 

 animals of the Brazilian forest and the noise made by the approach 

 of our troop of mules we saw during the day no wild mammals 

 whatever. 



September 2nd. — For over two hours after leaving last night's 

 camp, our route lay through the forest on the south slope of the Serra 

 do Espigao. About 11 a. m. we emerged on a more travelled trail 

 along which we passed several huts. Late in the afternoon the sick 

 mule lay down and we were forced to abandon the animal, as our 



