THE CHACO 379 



and so a great portion of the town moves bodily at different 

 intervals. 



On all sides lies the seemingly limitless Chaco. There is 

 practically no cultivation and but few herds of cattle had 

 been introduced to date. In addition to the great possibili- 

 ties for cattle-raising, the country also possesses enormous 

 wealth in quebracho-wood; at present quantities of it are 

 cut for use as fuel in the locomotives of several of the rail- 

 roads. Within a short time, no doubt, these assets will be 

 utilized in a manner that will be advantageous to both the 

 exploiters and the country at large. 



One of the interesting discoveries in the pampas was a 

 wintering-place for bobolinks. The extent of this bird's 

 migration had been shrouded in mystery, and but a single 

 specimen in winter plumage had ever been recorded. We 

 found them in flocks of thousands, perched in the top of 

 the tall grass or picking up seeds from the ground. Their 

 cheery song was conspicuously absent. They were in spotted 

 plumage. Small red-breasted meadow-larks (Leistes) min- 

 gled freely with the bobolinks. 



Another place that never failed to attract us was a small 

 lagoon flanked by forest on two sides, and by prairie on the 

 others. This region was the resort of many birds. Flocks 

 of Brazilian cardinals (Paroaria) numbering up to thirty 

 individuals congregated in the bushes, their flaming red 

 heads reminding one of clusters of brilliant flowers. We 

 discovered a nest of the species, a shallow affair of grass 

 stems, placed in the end of a branch twenty feet above the 

 ground; in it were two eggs resembling those of the Eng- 

 lish sparrow. Small black-and-white flycatchers (Fluvicola) 

 found the lagoon a most attractive spot. Their pear-shaped 

 bag nests of interwoven grasses and feathers were scattered 

 about in the overhanging bushes and also fastened to the 

 stems of aquatic plants, sometimes but a foot above the 

 water. There were also numbers of grebes, coots, and gal- 

 linules, and occasionally a pair of beautiful Brazilian teals 

 visited the quiet, secluded body of water. Night-herons 



