86 FALCONID^E. 



Presently four Caranchos appeared, two adults and two young birds in 

 brown plumage, and alighted on the ground near the carcass. The 

 young birds advanced at once and began tearing at the flesh ; while the 

 two old birds stayed where they had alighted, as if disinclined to feed 

 on half-putrid meat. Presently one of them sprung into the air and 

 made a dash at the birds in the water, and instantly all the birds in the 

 place rose into the air screaming loudly, the two young brown Caranchos 

 only remaining on the ground. For a few moments I was in ignorance 

 of the meaning of all this turmoil, when, suddenly, out of the confused 

 black and white cloud of birds the Egret appeared, mounting vertically 

 upwards with vigorous measured strokes. A moment later and first 

 one, then the other, Carancho also emerged from the cloud, evidently 

 pursuing the Egret, and only then the two brown birds sprung into the 

 air and joined in the chase. For some minutes I watched the four 

 birds toiling upwards with a wild zigzag flight, while the Egret, still 

 rising vertically, seemed to leave them hopelessly far behind. But 

 before long they reached and passed it, and each bird as he did so 

 would turn and rush downwards, striking at the Egret with his claws, 

 and while one descended the others were rising, bird following bird 

 with the greatest regularity. In this way they continued toiling up- 

 wards until the Egret appeared a mere white speck in the sky, about 

 which the four hateful black spots were still revolving. I had watched 

 them from the first with the greatest excitement, and now began to fear 

 that they would pass from sight and leave me in ignorance of the 

 result ; but at length they began to descend, and then it looked as if 

 the Egret had lost all hope, for it was dropping very rapidly, while the 

 four birds were all close to it striking at it every three or four seconds. 

 The descent for the last half of the distance was exceedingly rapid, and 

 the birds would have come down almost at the very spot they started 

 from, which was about forty yards from where I stood, but the Egret 

 was driven aside, and sloping rapidly down struck the earth at a distance 

 of two hundred and fifty yards from the starting point. Scarcely had 

 it touched the ground before the hungry quartette were tearing it with 

 their beaks. They were all equally hungry no doubt, and perhaps the 

 old birds were even hungrier than their young ; and I am quite sure 

 that if the flesh of the dead horse had not been so far advanced towards 

 putrefaction they would not have attempted the conquest of the Egret. 

 I have so frequently seen a pure white bird singled out for attack in 

 this way, that it has always been a great subject of wonder to me how 

 the two common species of snow-white Herons in South America are 

 able to maintain their existence ; for their whiteness exceeds that of other 

 >\hite AVatcrf owl, while, compared with Swans, Storks, and the Wood -Ibis, 



