120 BIRDS OF LA PLATA 



BLACK-FACED IBIS 



Theristicus caudatus 



Sides of throat and lores bare, skin black ; top of head and lower 

 part of neck in front reddish chestnut ; neck white ; back and wings 

 grey with green reflections ; tertials and outer webs of secondaries 

 for two-thirds of their length white, remainder dark green ; primaries 

 dark green ; rump light green, bronzed ; tail dark bronze green ; 

 under parts black; length 33, wing 16.25 inches. 



THIS very fine Ibis, called Mandurria 6 Curucdu by 

 Azara and Vanduria de invierno (Winter Vanduria) in 

 the vernacular, is one of the most interesting winter 

 visitors from Patagonia to the pampas of Buenos 

 Ayres. It is found in Chili, and has even been 

 obtained as far north as Peru* On the east side of 

 the continent it is most abundant (during the cold 

 season) about latitude 37 deg. or 38 deg. Its summer 

 home and breeding ground appears to be in the 

 extreme south of the continent, its eggs having been 

 obtained on the Straits of Magellan by Darwin, and 

 later by Dr. Cunningham, who only says of it 

 that it is a shy and wary bird, that goes in flocks of 

 from four to eight, and has a cry resembling qua-qua, 

 qua-qua. But he might just as well have spelt it 

 quack-quack, since qua-qua fails to give the faintest 

 idea of the series of hard, abrupt notes of extra- 

 ordinary power the bird utters, usually when on the 

 wing, which sound like blows of a powerful hammer 

 on a metal plate. On the pampas this Ibis appears 

 in May, frequents dry grassy situations, and goes 

 in flocks of a dozen to forty or fifty individuals. 



