472 Dr. E. A. Gocldi — Ornithological Results 



XXXVIII. — Ornithological Results of an Expedition up the 

 Capim River, State of Para, with Critical Remarks on the 

 Cracidse of Lower Amazonia. By Dr. Emil A. Goeldi, 

 H.M.B.O.U., C.M.Z.S., Director of the Para Museum. 



Contents. •,, 



Page 



I. Introductory Remarks 472 



II. Narrative of the Journey 47;"> 



III. List of the Birds of the River Capim 497 



I. Introductory Remarks. 

 The Capim River, the mouth of which is near the city of Para, 

 behind, the "Arsenal do Mariana," is the last considerable 

 affluent on the right side of the Amazon. It was important 

 in past times in the history of Portuguese colonization on 

 the Amazonian estuary and relatively well known in former 

 centuries, but has been nearly forgotten in our days and 

 has remained practically unexplored from a scientific stand- 

 point. The examination of this river would thus naturally 

 form for the Para Museum an object of particular interest 

 and earnest attention. An expedition with this purpose was 

 organized in June and July 1897; a zoologist, a botanist, 

 and two taxidermists of the Museum's staff forming the ex- 

 ploring corps, which, assisted by some important proprietors 

 on the lower course of the river, planned to advance, by a 

 steam-launch, as far as possible towards the headwaters and, 

 depth allowing, to enter one or more of them, thence to 

 return slowly in canoes brought up for the purpose. 



A sketch of our itinerary, principally dealing with the 

 geographical results, has already been published in a German 

 periodical *. But our map, our natural history, and our 

 ethnographical results, are only now approaching com- 

 pletion. The scientific results, as a whole, will probably 

 form one of the next " Memorias do Museu/' and it may be 

 stated that the large am6unt of illustrative material is the 

 principal reason of the slow progress of our work. I now 



* Goeldi, E. A., " Vorlaufige Mitteilung liber eine Forschungsreise 

 nach dem Oberlauf des Rio Capim, Staat Para," Petermann's Geogr. 

 Mitteil. vol. xliv. 189s, pp. 36-40. 



