( •.nn-ti/sii of Vliaiirs Sci ihiin '.s ,So/(,s' 



A TREE FERN IN THE HIGH ANDES 



The tree ferns of the Andes, which look at a distance like palm trees, thrive best in the relatively tem- 

 perate, moist, and shaded areas of the forested mountain slopes. (This photograph was taken in a 

 government camp at an altitude of 7000 ft.) About a third of Colombia is congenial to these ar- 

 borescent ferns which are interspersed among the oaks, bean trees, and luxuriant shrubbery, forming 

 a perfect "ocean" of forest. Here the explorer finds an abundance and variety of wild life that is 

 almost bewildering — as well as a superabundance of sand flies fleas, and malarial mosquitoes. 

 Mr. Miller took part in six of the eiglit expeditions sent to Colombia by the American Museum, 

 under the direction of Dr. Frank M. Chapman, for the purpose of making an ornithological sur- 

 vey of that country. His collecting carried him into regions almost unexplored — some even 

 unmapped — which he describes with care and accuracy. Transportation facilities, for the most 

 part, were limited to pack animals and porters, and some sections visited were almost im- 

 passable to even these primitive trains. In fact, Amazonian Colombia is so little opened up 

 that Mr. Miller is the tirst ornithologist to enter this large and zoologically rich area. Mr. 

 Miller's additional travels (see map opposite page 664) through ten other South Amer- 

 ican countries, extended over nearly six years, during M'hich time he traveled about 

 150,000 miles. All were American Museum expeditions, including the Roosevelt-Ron- 

 don South American Expedition 



662 



