NOETH AMERICAN MARSH BIRDS 67 



nest was on top perfectly flat. All the nests I saw were so situated that they 

 were comparatively difficult of access. The old birds do not defend either the 

 eggs or the young but at the approach of man fly away and do not return until 

 they feel quite safe. I was able to determine with certainty that the same nest 

 is used several years. If the eggs are taken from a nest, the tuyuyus will not 

 lay again in the same nest the same year. 



Under the appropriate name, "negro cop, " C.A.Lloyd (1897) 

 describes the nest of the jabiru very well, as follows: 



On the banks of the Awaricru the "negro cop" {Mycteria americana) breeds 

 regularly. The nest, which is a rather bulky affair, consists of a bundle of sticks 

 these varying from half to one inch in circumference. It much resembles a 

 gigantic pigeon's nest and has but a very slight depression in the center for the re- 

 ception of the eggs. These nests are generally placed on the large limbs of the silk- 

 cotton tree {Eriodendron anfractuosum) parallel to the limb, and to avoid being 

 blown down by the wind are cemented by a thick layer of mud mixed with grass 

 which on drying becomes hard and thus thoroughly secures the structure. The 

 eggs, which are about the size of those of a goose and of a dirty white color, are 

 laid in September, the usual number being four, but occasionally five are depos- 

 ited. 



A graphic picture of an interesting nest is given by Robert H. 

 Schomburgk (1841) , as follows: 



Near the entrance to the valley, and rising from 60 to 80 feet above the plain, 

 is a columnar group of trap rocks, the largest of which has been named by the 

 Macusis, Canuye piapa, or the Guava tree stump. Half a mile further westward, 

 and not quite so high, is another mass of rocks, which the traveler might mis- 

 take for the trunk of some large old tree, deprived of its leafy crown. It is a 

 gieat object of wonder amongst the Indians far and near, who call it pure-piapa, 

 " the felled tree." So complete was the illusion, that I almost doubted my 

 guides when they told me it was the work of nature, and was composed of stone. 

 The rock rises straight to a height of at least 50 feet, its sides are partly covered 

 by a red Lichen, and in some places it is more acted upon by the weather than 

 in others; the delusion being increased by the play of colors, the mind can 

 scarcely divest itself of the belief that it is the gigantic trunk of a tree, the head 

 of which, stricken by years, or shivered by lightning, lies mouldering at its foot. 

 On its summit, a jabiru, a species of stork, had built its nest, above which we 

 saw the head of a young one. On our approach its mother hastened from a neigh- 

 boring savannah to its protection, and perched on one leg, on the summit of the 

 rock, stood sentinel over the plain around. 



The rock may be considered sacred by the Macusi Indians but it did not 

 afford an asylum to the poor bird; for before I was aware of it, or could prevent 

 it, we heard the report of a gun, saw the poor bird balance itself for a few mo- 

 ments, and, pierced by the ball fall at the foot of the column. One of the Indians 

 had taken my rifle, and he being too unerring a marksman, even the height 

 which the bird had selected for its nest could not preserve its life. 



The nest shown in the photograph taken by Mr. J. R. Pemberton 

 is described in the notes he sent me, as follows: 



Only one nest was found although other unoccupied large nests which were 

 seen in high trees may have belonged to this species. The nest, of which a 

 photograph was taken, was situated fully 60 feet above the ground on a sloping 

 branch of a giant dead tree. The nest was above the level of the tops of the 

 surrounding living trees so that a commanding view obtained from the site. 



