298 Pictures of Bird Life 



the pretty Buff-backed Herons. They feed on ticks and 

 other insect parasites, from which their Spanish name is 

 derived — " Ag-arrapatosos "' (Tick-eaters). Besides tliese, we 

 saw plenty of Storks, Ibises, I^ittle Egrets, and Purple 

 Herons. 



For the last hour or so of our journey we had seen 

 in front of us o^•er tlie marsh a large white house, sur- 

 rounded by a few trees. This proved to be our destination. 

 The house, like all Spanish houses, is built in a square, 

 enclosing a large open space, or " patio."' The entrance was 

 a large arched doorway, high enough and wide enough, 

 when the thick and massive double doors, studded with 

 iron bolts, are tlu'own })ack, to allow three mounted men 

 to ride in abreast without stooping. A camp-bed was soon 

 unpacked from the long-suffering mule, and rigged up in 

 an upper room, and the baggage carried up, and presently a 

 hot meal and a wash made things seem comfortable. 



The house is in an ideal position for ornithological work, 

 on the very edge of tlie " marisma," where it first begins 

 imperceptibly to merge into dry land. Behind are sand- 

 dunes, pine- and cork-woods, and vast heather-covered wastes. 

 From my window every evening I could see the flocks of 

 Egrets and Herons wend their homeward flight, followed 

 by strings of Glossy Ibis, looking intensely black against 

 the glow of the sunset sky. Every night I was serenaded 

 by a pair of Barn-owls, which often sat on the balcony 

 outside my window. Tlieir uncaimy cries could be heard 

 far into the night, together with the cat-like mew of one 



