1870.] DOTANY AND ZOOLOGY. 359 



except around a large carcass. It is often seen singly, soaring at 

 a great height in vast circles. Its flight is slow. It never flaps 

 its wings in the air, but its head is always in motion as if in 

 search of food below. Its mouth is kept open and its tail spread. 

 To rise from the ground it must needs run for some distance > 

 then it flaps its wings three times and soars away. A narrow pen 

 is therefore sufficient to imprison it. In walking the wings trail 

 on the ground and the head takes a crouching position. Though 

 a carrion bird it breathes the purest air, spends much of its time 

 soaring three miles above the sea. Humboldt saw one fly over 

 Chimborazo. I have seen them sailing atone thousand feet above 

 the crater of Pichincha. Its gormandizing power has hardly been 

 overstated. I have known a single Condor, not of the largest size, 

 to make away in one week with a calf, a sheep, and a dog. It 

 prefers carrion, but will sometimes attack live sheep, deer, dogs, 

 etc. The eyes and tongue of a carcass are the favorite parts and 

 first devoured ; next the intestines, I never heard an authen- 

 ticated case of its carrying off children, nor of it attacking adults, 

 except in defence of its eggs. In captivity it will eat everything 

 except pork and fried or boiled meat. When full fed it is 

 exceedingly stupid, and can be caught by the hand ; but at other 

 times it is a match for the stoutest man. It passes the greater 

 part of the day sleeping, searching for prey in the morning and 

 evening. It is seldom shot (though it is not invulnerable as once 

 thought), but is generally caught in traps. The only noise it 

 makes, is a hiss like that of a goose — the usual tracheal muscle 

 being absent. It lays two white eggs on an inaccessible ledge. It 

 makes no nest proper, but places a few sticks around the eggs. 

 By no amount of bribery could I tempt an Indian to search for 

 Condor's eggs, and Mr. Smith, who had hunted nearly twelve 

 years in the Quito Valley, was never able to get sight of one. 

 Incubation occupies about seven weeks, ending in April or May 

 (in Patagonia much earlier, or about February.) The young are 

 scarcely covered with dirty white down, and are not able to fly 

 until nearly two years old. D'Orbigny says they take the wing 

 in about a month and a half after being hatched, a manifest error, 

 for they are then as downy as goslings. It is five months moult- 

 ing, and while at that stage when its wings are useless, it is fed 

 by its companion. As may be inferred the moulting time is not 

 uniform. Though it has neither the smelling powers of the dog 

 (as proved by Darwin), nor the bright eyes of the eagle, somehow 



