72 A YEJR OF COSTA RICAN NATURAL HISTORY 



feathers of ^the back are narrower, less well marked, or even 

 lacking, while the color of the upper side of the shafts of the 

 primaries (brown when freshly moulted) soon bleaches to an 

 old ivory, or yellowish-white, instead of remaining perma- 

 nently dusky brown as is usually the case in the northern 

 form (Nelson). 



At the bottom of the hotel street, perhaps half a mile 

 south of the railroad, was a large white slaughterhouse and 

 in the mornings it was no uncommon thing to see a line of 

 black vultures on the top of the front wall, waiting for their 

 share, while many others were on the ground or perched in 

 nearby trees. These zopilotes are very numerous around 

 Cartago and are of course exceedingly useful scavengers. 

 We sometimes watched them bathing. Their habit was to 

 fly into the water, take a few runs through it in their usual 

 stiflf-legged fashion, then lower the head into the water, 

 and, crouching, walk forward until the feathers were thor- 

 oughly wet. This happened in a short time for the feathers 

 seemed to have very little oil on them. Then up flew the 

 birds into some sunny place and after a few preliminary 

 shakings assumed the "spread eagle" attitude, with wings 

 outstretched, head thrust forward and always with their 

 backs to the sun. Occasionally one would make some hop- 

 ping steps, ruffling all its feathers, then spread out again. A 

 hundred or more of these awkward birds all facing one way 

 and all standing with their great wings spread out as far as 

 possible, presented a ludicrous spectacle. 



The slaughterhouse stood below and outside the town 

 itself on what we always called the "Slaughterhouse Road" 

 and which we usually followed when going to the numerous 

 lanes south of Cartago. These lanes, though running 

 straight and parallel to each other for fully half a mile 

 south of Slaughterhouse Road, were remarkably individual 

 in character, and one of them, our "Shady Lane," was much 



