A NATURALIST IN BRAZIL 



In the trees and bushes surrounding the fields, and often growing 

 in their midst, the birds were able to take refuge and build their 

 nests, and all sorts of other creatures were plentiful, and among 

 them were many enemies of the caterpillar. One must remember, 

 too, that areas infested by insect pests attract birds and other 

 insects, which assemble there as long as those pests remain to be 

 eaten, often coming from a considerable distance, so that one asks 

 oneself in astonishment how they could possibly have become aware 

 of the feast awaiting them. In the same way, if one part of our body 

 is diseased the other parts turn their attention to it; blood flows 

 towards it, and the temperature rises. 



Nearer the coast the cotton was planted in very large fields; far 

 and wide not a wood or thicket was left standing, so there were no 

 birds there, for their fear of hawks makes them reluctant to fly over 

 treeless areas. And here, sure enough, all the pods were worm-eaten ! 



I observed something similar in the case of the coconut-palms. 

 My delight in seeing these beautiful trees again on my return to 

 Recife was marred by the fact that many of them were crowned 

 only by the bare midribs of the leaves. The caterpillar of the 

 Brassolis butterfly was responsible for the damage. But as soon as I 

 left the city behind me I found that the palms were flourishing in 

 undiminished splendour. The explanation of the mystery was as 

 follows : certain birds of the Cuckoo family eagerly devoured the 

 long, unappetising-looking caterpillars, just as the European cuckoo 

 eats and indeed prefers the hairy caterpillars disdained by other 

 birds. But since the birds did not enter the city, the caterpillars were 

 there able to do their work undisturbed, and the devastation extended 

 to the limits of the areas haunted by the bird. 



The birds which thus make themselves useful are the Anums; 

 long-tailed birds not unlike our magpie. One species, the Aniim 

 branco, is spotted with brown ; another is jet-black ; and a third, a 

 larger brown bird, is known as "Almo da gato," "Soul of the cat," 

 because its cry is like the mewing of a cat. The black Aniims are 

 common everywhere; they fly across the meadows with a loud, 

 questioning d-nu, whisking their tails up and down as they alight, 

 and search themselves, as well as any grazing cattle that may be 

 accessible, for ticks. Their flight is like that of the paper birds which 

 children throw into the air. 



154 



