THE BANANA RIVER COUNTRY 311 



mouth is two to three hundred feet wide, with banks fifteen 

 to twenty feet high; these were covered in many places with 

 wild cane, elsewhere bordered by banana-plantations and 

 on the right bank near the mouth by forest to a slight ex- 

 tent. The current was not swift here for the fall was but 

 slight, and within the banks mentioned and at a lower level 

 were frequent stony or sandy beaches, enclosing so-called 

 lagunas or almost landlocked arms of the river. 



We went downstream slowly, as near as possible to the 

 vegetation of a bank so that I might see and gather any 

 dragonflies to be found there. Once a ripple was pointed 

 out as a place where the negroes had seen an "alligator" 

 sink. We landed on several of the little beaches and these, 

 or rather their lagunas, furnished better collecting-grounds 

 than the river itself. As we neared the mouth of the river 

 a tall tree on the right bank came into view; it was leafless 

 but at its crown were many of the hanging nests of the oro- 

 pendolas. I counted seventy and had then to stop count- 

 ing owing to the changing position of the boat, but I think I 

 had counted only half. Herons, white, gray or black, were 

 disturbed by our approach and flew down ahead of us or 

 turned and, passing over us, went upstream to be again 

 aroused on our return. These herons were not numerous, 

 however. Sandpipers, looking like those at home, ran along 

 beach-edges or skimmed the water's surface. 



The river emptied into the Caribbean by a rather narrow 

 passage. I landed on the sandy strip which separated the 

 sea from the river before the latter narrowed. The surf 

 was fine and heavy. Many black vultures were standing 

 on the sand, waiting for river or sea to bring carrion. Four 

 pelicans were swimming inside the breakers, looking like 

 great swans, or flying over the water for short distances. A 

 flock of fifty or more dragonflies {Pantala flavescens^ Tramea 

 cophysa^ Miathyria marcella) was drifting over the sand 



