71 8 NIEtJHOFF's BRAZIL. 



its head and fore-feet under the neck, and roves about in the night time. As often 

 as it drinks, the water fpouts forth immediately through the noftrils. 



They have alfo a kind of ferpents of about two fathoms long, without legs, with a 

 Ikin of various colours, and four teeth. The tongue is fplit in the middle, refembling 

 two arrows, and the poifon is hid in a bladder in its tail. 



The four-legged creature, called by the Brazilians Tatu and Tatupera, by the Spa- 

 niards, Armadillo, by the Portuguefe, Encuberto, and by the Dutch, Schilt Verken 

 (fliield-hog), becaufe it is defended with fcales like as with an armour, refembles in 

 bignefs and fhape our hogs ; there are feveral forts of them. The uppermoft part of 

 the body, as well as the head and tail, is covered with bony fhields, compofed of very 

 fine fcales. It has on the back feven partitions, betwixt each of which appears a dark 

 brown Ikin. The head is altogether like that of a hog, with a Iharp nofe, wherewith 

 they grub under ground ; fmall eyes, which lie deep in the head ; a little, but fharp 

 tongue ; dark brown and Ihort ears, without hair or fcales : the colour of the whole body 

 inclining to red ; the tail in its beginning is about four fingers thick, but grows by 

 degrees fharp and round to the end, like thofe of our pigs : but the belly, the breaft, 

 and legs are without any fcales ; but covered with a Ikin not unlike that of a 

 goofe, and whitifh hair of a finger's length. It is generally very bulky and fat, living 

 upon melons and roots, and does confiderable mifchief in the plantations. It loves to 

 rout under ground, eats rabbtis, and the dead carcafes of birds, or any other carrion : * 

 it drinks much, lives for the moft part upon the land, yet loves the water and marfhy 

 places. Its flefh is fit to be eaten. It is catched like the doe in Holland with the 

 rabbits, by fending a fmall dog abroad, who by his barking, gives notice where it 

 lurks under ground, and fo by digging up the ground it is found and catched. 



The bats in Brazil, called by the inhabitants Andirika, are of the bignefs of our 

 crows ; they are very fierce, and bite moll violently with their fharp teeth. They 

 build their nefts in hollow trees and holes. 



The bird called by the Brazilians Ipekati Apoa, by the Portuguefe Fata, is no 

 more than a goofe ; and for that reafon by the Dutch called a wild-goofe. It is of 

 the bignefs of one of our geefe of about nine months old, and in all other refpefts 

 refembles them. The belly and under part of the tail, as likewife the neck, is covered 

 with white feathers ; but on the back to the neck, on the wings and head, the feathers 

 are black intermixed with fome green. There are alfo fome black feathers inter- 

 mixed with the white ones on the neck and belly. They differ from our geefe in this, 

 that they are fomewhat bigger ; their bills refemble rather thofe of our ducks, but are 

 black, and turned at the end, and on the top of it grows a broad, round, and black 

 piece of flefh, with white fpeckles. They are commonly found near the river fide, are 

 very flelhy and well-tafted. 



The bird by the Brazilians called Toukan, or large bill, is about the bignefs of a 

 wood-pigeon. It has a crop about the breaft of three or four fingers in compafs, of a 

 faffron colour, with high red-coloured feathers round the edges, which are yellow on 

 the breaft, but black on the back and all the other parts of the body. Its bill is very 

 large, of the length of a palm of a hand, yellow without and red within. It is almofl 

 incredible how fo fmall a bird is able to manage fo large a bill, but that it is very thin 

 and light. 



The bird called by the Brazilians Kokoi, is a kind of a crane, very pleafmg to 

 the fight, as big as our ftorks. Their bills are ftraight and fharp, about fix fingers in 

 length, of a yellowifh colour inclining to green. The neck is fifteen fingers long, the 

 body ten, the tail five ; their legs are half-ways covered with feathers, about eight 



1 2 fingers 



