322 Information respecting Botanical Travellers, 



canoes, they sounded their shrill notes, and followed in short 

 flights from shrub to shrub. The Indian is no friend to the 

 Crotophaga ; he has an idea that this bird cannot bear the 

 human whistle, and flies as soon as it is sounded. Our Indian 

 guides amused themselves therefore frequently in breaking out 

 on a sudden in a shrill whistle ; and were highly delighted 

 when the startled birds took to their wings. I subjoin the 

 Indian names for the lesser Crotophaga (C rugirostra). It 

 is called in the Lingua Geral which is spoken in the province 

 Para Ano Curauca, in the Arawak Cunuba, in the Macusi 

 Owowi, in the Wapeshana Houwi, C. major is called Wovjo- 

 rlma by the Macasis, and Cosac by the Warraus.^' 



[To be continued.] 



XL. — Information respecting Botanical Travellers, 



Mr. Schomburgk's recent Expedition in Guiana. 



[Continued from p. 266.] 



There are contradictory accounts among the Indians of a species 

 of a cat, which in size and spotting resembles the Cheta (Felisju- 

 bata). Its ground colour is yellowish-fawn, and the spots are of a 

 uniform colour and full and complete. Such appeared the cat to me 

 which I saw watching me as related above * ; and although I have 

 doubted the evidence of my eyes, the existence of such a species has 

 gained additional strength by the circumstance, that, on vii^^iting the 

 British Museum with the three Indians who accompanied me from 

 Guiana to England, they took the Cheta to be a specimen of that 

 species which is indigenous to Guiana, and identical with the one 

 which annoyed us so much. 



In the Supplement to Buffon's ' Histoire Naturelle,' tome iii. 

 planche 38 f, the figure of a cat is given which agrees with the one 

 which I saw at Curassawaka, and it would be remarkable if, after all 



* See p. 265. 



f Nous donnons ici la figure d'un animal de I'espece des leopards ou des 

 jaguars. Le dessin nous en a ete envoye par feu M. Colinson, mais sans 

 nom, et sans aucune autre notice. Et comme nous ignorons, s'il appartient 

 a I'ancien ou au nouveau continent, et qu'en meme temps, il differe de 

 I'once et du leopard, par la forme des taclies et plus encore du jaguar et de 

 I'ocelot, nous ne pouvons decider auquel de ces animaux on doit le rap- 

 porter ; seulement il nous paroit qu'il a uu peu plus de rapport avec le ja- 

 guar, qu'avec le leopard. — Ibid. p. 218. 



