1 8 Mr. G. C. Taylor on Birds collected 



water, called ' Agua azul^ or 'Blue water/ from a large spring 

 of deep blue tint which rises a short distance behind the house 

 and flows into the lake. In one place it forms a deep basin 

 surrounded by thick grass and water-plants, which float on the 

 surface of the water. The people at the hacienda told us that 

 it was full of alligators, and that they came ashore daily to bask 

 in the sun. Accordingly, as soon as the sun was high enough, 

 we went down with gun and rifle loaded, and saw an alligator 

 12 or 15 feet long, lying on the bank at the edge of the water. 

 We were perhaps eighty yards away, and could not approach 

 nearer. Col. Stanton fired at him, and, I think, missed, as I 

 did not hear the thud made by a ball striking its object. The 

 alligator, however, ])lunged in at once among the floating grass, 

 and we saw no more of him. He moved so quickly that I had 

 not time to fire my gun. Either the same or other alligators * 

 came out again several times during the day, on to the same 

 bank, and again the day following ; and several shots were fired 

 at them, but without any evidence of success. 



Every tree and blade of grass near the hacienda swarmed 

 with agarrapatas. We could not go twenty yards without catch- 

 ing these tartars. They were more numerous here than in any 

 other place where I have been before or since. There were 

 a great number of cattle about ; and the number of agarrapatas 

 is corroborative of the assertion that they most abound where 

 there are cattle. 



Next day I went out in a canoe to shoot among the reeds 

 on the lake, taking with me Nicazio, our rascally bad cook, to 

 paddle. It was the only sort of sport that could be followed 

 without danger of agarrapatas. Owing to the villainous paddling 

 of Nicazio, whose performances afloat were even worse than his 

 cooking, I was not very successful. I saw several different species 

 of Ducks in considerable numbers, Anhingas {Plotus), and Cor- 

 moi-ants; also plenty of Coots {Fulica) , Gallinules, and Jacanas 

 {Parra) in dozens. There were likewise various kinds of Herons 

 [Ardeida). I also saw some alligators floating with their heads 



* The Alligator {Alligator mississipensis) being only found in North 

 America, the animal referred to here is probably a Crocodile (Crocodilus 

 iimericunus).^ED. 



