BIRD THAT TENDS FLOCK. IO7 



take long for the beautiful things to understand it, and, 

 whereas at first they used to withdraw their petals and 

 shut up tightly when the stick approached, now they twine 

 gracefully and stretch their dainty arms out as far as they 

 can in order to reach it. — London Answers. 



Bird That Tends Flock. 



The natives of Venezuela and adjoining countries on the north 

 side of the river Amazon, often avail themselves of the services of 

 the native crane to care for their poultry, and also use it in the 

 place of a collie or shepherd dog, to guard and herd their domestic 

 animals. This remarkable bird, which the Indians call yakamik, 

 is found in a wild state in the great forests that lie between the 

 northern coasts of South America and the Amazon river, particu- 

 larly in Venezuela and British Guiana. The birds never leave the 

 forests iinless shot or captured. 



They travel about in flocks of from 100 to 200, in search of the 

 berries, fruits, and insects upon which they subsist. Their usual 

 gait is a slow and stately march, but they enliven themselves from 

 time to time by leaping up in the air, executing eccentric and fancy 

 waltzes, and striking the most absurd and preposterous attitudes. 

 If pursued, they endeavor to save themselves by running, for their 

 flight is so weak, according to Schomburg, that when they attempt 

 to fly over a body of water of any considerable width, they are often 

 compelled to drop upon it and save themselves by swimming. 



When alarmed, they utter the peculiar cry which has obtained 

 for them the name of trumpeters. The sound is something like 

 that produced by a person endeavoring to shout the syllables "tow, 

 tow, tow, tow, tow, tow," with his mouth shut, or the doleful 

 noise made by children on New Year's day with their trumpets. 

 The yakamiks usually deposit their eggs in a hollow in the ground, 

 often at the foot of a tree. 



A nest generally contains ten eggs of a pale green color. The 

 young birds follow their mothers as soon as they are hatched, but 

 do not lose their pretty downy covering until several weeks old. 

 The yakamiks are very readily tamed and prove valuable servants 

 to the Indians, who domesticate them, and as they are courageous, 



