86 TRANSACTIONS AND PROCEEDINGS OF THE [Sess. lv. 



great trouble to get a couple of specimens. I don't know what 

 species it can be, but it is a magnificent bird, about the size of a 

 rook, with immensely long tail, and plumage of deej) black, fairly 

 resplendent with metallic reflections of deep blue and dark green, 

 rivalling in the richness of its shades the rifle bird of Australia, 

 which I have always regarded as one of my beaux ideals of avian 

 beauty. The other two cuckoos I have found are Piaya cayana, 

 Linn., and a true Coccyzus {C. melanocuryplms, VieilL). 



" As we ]3ass along the margin of the monte one may come in 

 sight of a small troop of Dicotyles tonjuahis, F. Cuv., the collared 

 peccary, burrowing in the grovmd for the roots Avhich form their 

 food ; or may suddenly see just within the edge of the wood the head 

 and neck of the beautiful little ' guazu vira ' (Cervus sitiijjUcicornis, 

 Illig.), as it stands motionless as a statue gazing at us, trusting to 

 its absolute stillness and dulness of colouring to escape observati.on. 

 In these so-limited patches of forest, monkeys are almost absent ; 

 the only one I have seen is the mirikina {Nydipithectis trivirr/atus, 

 F. Cuv.), one of these curious little nocturnal monkeys which 

 Humboldt met with in the north, and which, if I remember rightly, 

 Bates also mentions. Leaving the monte now we pass on to the 

 extensive range of marshes or ' esteros' bounding the * brazo 

 occidental.' Pushing our way quietly through the tall bulrushes, 

 we come upon a sequestered little lagunite, covered with the usual 

 carpet of Fistia, and surrounded by bidrushes. We just catch a 

 glimpse of the large and beautiful though plainly-coloured ypecahd 

 rail (Aramides ypecalia, VieilL); a pair of big chajas {Ch.anna 

 chavaria, Linn.), fly ofi" with loud and harsh screams ; a small flock 

 of jacanas {Parra jacmia, Linn.) also fly ofi", and the pool is left 

 apparently lifeless, until, on looking more closely, one detects here 

 and there tlie glistening head of a motionless jacare. 



" ISTow I am beginning to feel that this bare list of animals, even 

 though coniining itself to the more prominent ones, is getting 

 particularly stale and uninteresting, so I will rapidly wind up, 

 merely mentioning that I have omitted to mention the beautiful 

 kingfishers {Ceryle torquata, Linn., G. amazona, Lath., and C. 

 americana, Gm.) which flit along the river ; the herons and egrets 

 which may be found perched by its margin ; the great muscovy 

 ducks ; the occasional cormorant (PJia/acrocorax hrasiliensis, Gm.) ; 

 or the huge jabirn, which one may find standing motionless on one 

 leg, his head and great beak resting upon his breast, as if in silent 

 meditation — appropriate guardian of some small and lonely pool. 

 In my letter to you from Mate Grande, I think I mentioned the 

 wonderful concert of animal voices which is to be heard at night 

 in the Pampas.* You may think that I would have the same to 

 describe here, but in much more varied and accentuated form, 

 owing to our greatly lower latitude. But, on the contrary, it is not 



* All extract fruiu this letter wa« published in tlie ' Ibis ' lor July 1890. 



