NATURALIST IN BRAZIL 



the reader bodily into the scenes which I have described, and enable 

 him to make such discoveries as I made myself. Even the expert, 

 I hope, may find something new in these pages. And to this end I 

 have kept all personalities in the background, in order that Nature 

 may speak with her own mighty voice. In each chapter the image 

 of a landscape is revealed in the harmonious co-operation of its flora 

 and fauna, with all its characteristic colours and voices and perfumes. 

 Sixteen years ago I was able, in the same way, to study the Indian 

 island of Ceylon, so that comparisons between the two tropical 

 countries inevitably suggested themselves ; I was able to define their 

 characteristic features; and thus my book deals not merely with 

 the flora and fauna of Brazil, but also, in a certain degree, with 

 tropical Nature in general ; so that I hope it may be equally welcome 

 to the ordinary reader and to the scientist. And if at times the image 

 of my German homeland has been reflected in the mirror of the 

 tropics, this juxtaposition of images will but more sharply define the 

 individuality of either landscape. 



Towards the end of my sojourn in the country I lectured in 

 Portuguese before the Agricultural Society and the Faculty of 

 Philosophy in Sao Paulo ; and I also introduced my German fellow- 

 countryfolk in Recife, Rio, Sao Paulo and Buenos Aires, by courses 

 of lectures and instructional excursions, to the flora and fauna of 

 Brazil. Many who attended these lectures and excursions have 

 assured me that they have now, for the first time, learned to love 

 the new home which has revealed to them so many lovely and 

 fascinating things, of whose existence, in such abundance, and so 

 close at hand, they had never had any suspicion. In so far as this 

 book proceeds a little further on the lines thus indicated, it has yet 

 a third purpose: to be a book on Brazil for the Brazilians. Nature 

 is here considered not by the critical eye of an outsider, but by a 

 heart full of love for the sunny land ; and the plants and animals 

 are given the native names which the Indians have so aptly bestowed 

 on them. The scientific denominations will be found in the Index, 

 which is almost a handbook in itself, and which, I hope, will make 

 it easier for subsequent explorers and scientists to find their way 

 about, since in addition to giving the derivation and affiliation and 

 peculiar features of plants and animals, it contains references to the 

 principal authorities for those who desire to study the various species 

 more particularly. 



May the readers of my book learn to see the face of Brazil as the 

 countenance of a friend ! And when they have learned to love it, 



lO 



