Through the Giant Cactus Forest 125 



other birds walking up and down the beach, 

 singly, in platoons and companies. Great flights 

 of migrant birds filled the air with the roar of 

 wings and strange cries. Early in the night a 

 coyote on the opposite island began to yelp and 

 bark, working himself up to such a pitch that 

 one heard a dozen wolves instead of one; then 

 he was answered by another near us, which came 

 creeping around, demoralizing the mules, making 

 them snort and attempt to break away. 



On the neighboring roof of a veranda, several 

 of the curious ani birds of Mexico amused them- 

 selves by jumping over a small opening in the 

 roof, keeping this up until sunrise. From over 

 on the island an occasional wild cry came that 

 might have been that of a jaguar as I followed 

 the trail of a big cat-like animal all over the 

 first island, that had its little forest of cactus, 

 its curious paper trees, here dwarfs, blown down 

 by the prevailing wind, until they seemed to 

 creep along the ground, like some weird reptiles. 



Early in the morning our Yaqui runner ap- 

 peared, ready to shoot game for our breakfast, 

 and we pushed the edge of the tarpaulin down 

 and discussed it. Some were for green turtle, 

 others jacksnipe; one had a longing for plover, 

 while another preferred Tobari oysters, the 

 most delicious in the world, in the deep shell; 

 and still another wanted venison. It was clearly 

 an embarrassment of riches, hence we decided 



