PARADISE KEY SAFFORD. 423 



bird (Thryothorus ludovicianus mdamensis) Mrs. Kirk Munroe has 

 paid a well-deserved tribute. 



Following these in the bird census of the park come the ruby- 

 crowned kinglet; the wood thrush; Wilson thrush, Hermit thrush, 

 American robin (Planesticus migratorius) and bluebird {Sialia 

 sialis) ; the Florida blue jay, Florida crow, and the fish crow; a 

 number of wood warblers, including the beautiful little ovenbird 

 (Seiurus aurocapillus) , which comes daily to the door of the park 

 lodge to be fed with scraps from the table ; the Florida yellowthroat ; 

 and the American redstart {Setophaga ruticiUa). During the 

 writer's visit to the park several individuals of this beautiful bird 

 were frequent visitors to a blooming marlberry tree {Icacorea panicu- 

 lata) in quest of insects attracted by its fragrant, elderlike blossoms. 



The list of birds terminates with the names of several vireos, the 

 scarlet tanager, summer tanager ; the American goldfinch ; the Savan- 

 nah sparrow, which is a pest in the seed beds of neighboring truck 

 farmers; the Florida cardinal, the female of which is more deeply 

 colored than in our own variety ; the blue grosbeak ; the indigo bunt- 

 ing; and the many-colored painted bunting, or nonpareil. One 

 would think that the last-named bird {PasseHna ciris) would be 

 highly conspicuous in its natural habitat; but Doctor Oberholser, 

 who is a keen observer, says that it is often difficult to detect in the 

 dense undergrowth which it frequents, for the bright colors of its 

 varied plumage act as a kind of camouflage or disguise. 



MAMMALS. 



Among the strange animals which early explorers encountered in 

 the New World the two which excited most wonder were the opossum 

 and the strange, aquatic manatee, both of which were unlike any- 

 thing ever before seen. The imperfect descriptions of the manatee 

 gave rise to tales of sirens, and the exaggerated accounts of the 

 animal which carried its young in pouches made of its own skin 

 resulted in various fanciful pictures. 



In southern Florida several of our familiar animals are repre- 

 sented by varieties slightly different from northern forms, varying 

 either in color, size, or relative proportion of the parts. Thus the 

 mammal fauna of the Royal Palm State Park includes the Florida 

 opossum, DidelpMs virginiana pigra y very similar to our northern 

 type but somewhat smaller and with a longer and more slender tail ; 

 the cotton rat of south Florida, Sigmodon hispidus spadicipygus; the 

 south Florida rice rat, Oryzomys pdkistris coloratus, aquatic in its 

 habits and an excellent swimmer; the Florida cotton mouse, Pero- 

 myscus gossypinus palmarius, very abundant in the forest ; the Flor- 



