534 ulloa's voyage to south America. 



felves, never taking flight except acrofs a valley, or when purfued. The flefh eats very 

 well, after being kept three or four days to leflen its natural toughnefs. Thefe birds 

 are alfo found in places lefs cold than the mountainous deferts ; but here, indeed, they 

 are fomething different, having on the forehead a kind of cartilaginous horn ; but both 

 thefe and the other fpecies have a crell on their head. 



The gardens of all kinds in the villages are much frequented by a bird very remark- 



,j-inm- ^^j^ l^^j.j^ £-^^. jjg fmallnefs and the vivid colours of its feathers. It is generally called 

 Picaflores, or flower-pecker, from its hovering over them, and fucking their juices 

 without lacerating or fo much as difordering them. Its proper name is Ouinde, though 

 it is alfo known by thofe of Rabilargo and Sifongero, and in England by that of 

 humming-bird. Its whole body, with its plumage, does not exceed the bignefs of a 

 middle-fized nutmeg ; the tail is ufually near three times the length of the whole body, 

 yet has but few feathers ; its neck is fhort ; the head proportioned, with a very briflc 

 eye ; the bill long and flender, white at the beginning and black at th^-end : the wings 

 are alfo long and narrow. Moll of the body is green, fpotted with yellow and blue. 

 Some are higher coloured than others ; and all are variegated with flireaks, as it were, 

 of gold. Of this bird, alfo, there *are various fpecies, diflinguifhed by their fize and 

 colours. This is thought to be the fmalleft of all known birds ; the female lays but 

 two eggs at a time, and thofe no bigger than peas. They build in trees, and the coarfeft 

 materials of their neflis are the fineft fl:raws they can pick up. 



In the parts of this country, which are neither taken up by mountains nor forefls, only 

 tame animals are met with ; whence it is probable, that formerly its native fpecies were 

 but very few ; mod of thefe having been introduced by the Spaniards, except the llama, 



'' . to which the Indians added the name of runa, to denote an Indian flieep, that beall be- 



6j ing now underfl:ood by the runa-llama ; though, properly, llama is a general name im- 



'^ porting beafl:, in oppofition to the human fpecies. This animal, in feveral particulars, 



refembles the camel : as in the fliape of its neck, head, and fome other parts ; but has 

 no bunch, and is much fmaller ; cloven-footed, and different in colour : for though moll 

 of them are brown, fome are white, others black, and others of different colours : its pace 

 refembles that of a camel, and its height equal to that of an afs betwixt an year and two 

 old. The Indians ufe them as beads of carriage ; and they anfwer very well for any 

 load under a hundred weight. They chiefly abound in the jurifdidion of Riobamba, 

 there being fcarce an Indian who has not one for carrying on his little traffick from one 

 village to another. Anciently the Indians ufed to eat the fleflli of them, and fl:ill continue 

 to make that ufe of thofe which are pall labour. They fay there is no difference be- 

 twixt it and mutton, except that the former is fomething fweeter ; it is a very docile* 

 creature, and eafily kept. Its whole defence is, to ejed from its nofl:rils fome vifcofi- 

 ties, which is faid to give the itch to any on which they fall ; fo that the Indians, who 

 firmly believe this, are very cautious of provoking the llama. 



In the fouthern provinces of Peru, namely, in Cufco, La Paz, La Plata, and the adja- 

 cent parts, are two other animals, not very different from the llama : thefe are the vicuna 



c**^ and the guanaco ; the only difference between them being, that the^icuna is fomething 

 fmaller, its wool fliorter and finer, and brown all over the body, except the belly, 

 which is whitifli. The guanaco, on the contrary, is much larger, its wool long and 



^^' harfli ; but the fliape of both is pretty near alike. Thefe lall are of great fervice in the 

 mines, carrying metals in fuch rugged roads as would be imprafticable to any other 

 beafl. 



In the houfes is bred a creature called chucha ; but in the other fouthern provinces it 

 is known by the Indian name of muca-muca ; it refembles a rat, but confiderably big- 

 ger, with a long fnout, not unlike that of a hog j the feet and tail are exactly the fame 



I as 



