108 IN THE WILDS OF SOUTH AMERICA 



to go to the outskirts of the town to find birds in greatest 

 abundance. A number of tall dead trees had been left 

 standing in the clearing, probably because it was easier to 

 merely girdle them and let them die than to cut them 

 down, and many blue and yellow macaws and Amazon par- 

 rots were nesting in cavities high up in the trunks. They 

 had young at the time of our visit (March), and screamed 

 and fluttered about the nests all day long. No one thought 

 of disturbing them. Rough-winged swallows and martens 

 nested in the same stubs, and apparently lived in perfect 

 harmony with their noisy neighbors. 



A shallow, narrow stream of clear water flows through 

 the clearing, and a belt of woods and low sprouts mantles 

 each bank with dusky green. This was the favorite resort 

 of many small birds; oven-birds and ant-wrens ran about 

 in the deep shade, while night-hawks, aroused from their 

 slumbers, flapped noiselessly into the air and dropped again 

 a few feet away. Scores of parrakeets chattered in the 

 branches overhead, while flocks of large, spotted wrens 

 (Heleodytes) added to the chorus with their incessant 

 scolding. 



If we remained close to the stream we were sure to sur- 

 prise herons of several species, and black ibises wading in 

 the shallow water. A species of ani (Crotophaga) fluttered 

 in the overhanging bushes; they were awkward though 

 beautiful creatures, the size of a blue jay, with brilliant, 

 black iridescent plumage; the mouth was pure white, while 

 the eyes were of a pea-green color. 



If our tramp led to the heavy forest, the character of the 

 birds changed. Giant orioles (Ostinops), grackles, and 

 chachalacas always remained near the border of the taller 

 growth, and toucans in flocks seemed to prefer the protec- 

 tion of the more inaccessible cover. 



The forest is magnificent, and is composed largely of 

 ceibas with thick, white trunks and wide-spreading tops. 

 Many tagua, or ivory-nut palms, grow beneath the tall 

 trees; their fruit is one of the important articles of export 



