66 OUR SEARCH FOR A WILDERNESS. 



crackling twigs. A sudden rustling sound draws our atten- 

 tion, and we look up and find ourselves within a few feet of a 

 dry palm stub. Around the roughened stringy bark peers a 

 green head with wide, yellow eyes, and we stiffen into 

 immobility. The position is anything but comfortable; 

 thorns are scratching us, flies are tickling our faces, but we 



FIG. 36. AMAZON PARROT ABOUT TO TAKE FLIGHT. 



dare not move. After five minutes, which seem hours, the 

 big Yellow -fronted Amazon Parrot 64 withdraws, and we hear 

 a scuttling within the stub. Silently and with the greatest 

 caution we step backward, and after a rest we arrange our 

 plan of attack. 



These birds usually nest in hollows in the tops of the tallest, 

 most inaccessible trees, and this is a golden opportunity 



