THE CONDOR 193 



feet. This bird is known to have a wide geogiaphical range, 

 being found on the west coast of South America, from the 

 Strait of Magellan along the Cordillera as far as eight degrees 

 N. of the equator. The steep cliff near the mouth of the Rio 

 Negro is its northern limit on the Patagonian coast ; and they 

 have there wandered about four hundied miles from the great 

 central line of their habitation in the Andes. Farther south, 

 among the bold precipices at the head of Port Desire, the 

 condor is not uncommon ; yet onh' a {qw stragglers occasionally 

 visit the sea-coast. A line of cliff near the mouth of the Santa 

 Cruz is frequented by these birds, and about eighty miles up 

 the river, where the sides of the valley are formed by steep 

 basaltic precipices, the condor reappears. From these facts, it 

 seems that the condors require perpendicular cliffs. In Chile, 

 they haunt, during the greater part of the year, the lower 

 country near the shores of the Pacific, and at night several roost 

 together in one tree ; but in the early part of summer they 

 retire to the most inaccessible parts of the inner Cordillera, 

 there to breed in peace. 



With respect to their propagation, I was told by the country 

 people in Chile that the condor makes no sort of nest, but in 

 the months of November and December lays two large white 

 eggs on a shelf of bare rock. It is said that the young condors 

 cannot fly for an entire year ; and long after they are able, they 

 continue to roost b}- night, and hunt by day with their parents. 

 The old birds generally live in pairs ; but among the inland 

 basaltic cliffs of the Santa Cruz I found a spot where scores 

 must usually haunt. On coming suddenly to the brow of the 

 precipice, it u^as a grand spectacle to see between twenty and 

 thirty of these great birds start heavily from their resting-place, 

 and wheel away in majestic circles. From the quantity of 

 dung on the rocks, they must long have frequented this cliff for 

 roosting and breeding. Having gorged themselves with carrion 

 on the plains below^ they retire to these favourite ledges to 

 digest their food. From these facts, the condor, like the 

 gallinazo, must to a certain degree be considered as a gregarious 

 bird. In this part of the country they live altogether on the 

 guanacos which have died a natural death, or, as more commonly 

 happens, have been killed by the pumas. I believe, from what 

 I saw in Patagonia, that they do not on ordinar)- occasions 

 14 



