82 PATAGONIAN EXPEDITIONS : NARRATIVE. 



were disappointed, and I would arrive upon the scene only to find all 

 deserted. Upon making a circle of from fifty to one hundred yards, 

 however, I would usually come upon them, though so completely ob- 

 scured, as they lay at intervals of only a few feet, hidden in shallow de- 

 pressions or concealed behind the scanty tufts of grass, that I would only 

 become aware of their presence by the startled flight of one of their num- 

 ber, as it rose suddenly and directly from my feet, where it had lain and 

 might have remained unnoticed and in perfect security, unless accidentally 

 trampled upon. On remaining perfectly quiet for a few moments, after 

 thus disturbing one of these birds, and carefully scanning each tuft of 

 grass and the inequalities in the surface in the immediate vicinity, one 

 may detect the other members of the covey, each bird lying flat and 

 perfectly motionless like so many inanimate objects on the shingle-covered 

 surface. I have said "like so many inanimate objects," though as a 

 matter of fact this is not strictly true, for upon closer inspection two small, 

 jet-black eyes may be seen intently watching the movements of the 

 intruder, and immediately upon detecting any intention in the latter 

 hostile to themselves, they are off in an instant, accompanying their rapid 

 and peculiarly spiral or zigzag flight with a series of low, plaintive 

 chirrups or notes not at all unpleasing to the ear and calculated to soften 

 the heart of the sportsman, if indeed he has not already forgotten the 

 presence of his fowling piece through his greater interest in the novelty 

 of the situation. The lives of thousands of these birds must annually be 

 saved through the protection afforded them by color, from destruction by 

 the numerous hawks, falcons, and other predatory birds and mammals 

 that throughout the year infest this region in great numbers. 



A considerable variety of ducks, geese and other water fowl were at 

 this season especially plentiful about the margins or in the waters of the 

 rivers and lakes. Scarcely a pool or marsh, however limited in area, that 

 was not tenanted by at least one pair of the American grebe, or "hell 

 diver," Podicipes americanus. On the surface of the larger lakes there 

 floated gracefully great numbers of the black-necked swan, Cygnus 

 melanocoryphus, while the beautiful white-necked variety, Coscoroba cos- 

 coroba, though much less common, was occasionally to be seen clothed 

 with a covering of immaculate white feathers, either solitary, or with one 

 or more companions, gliding in and out among its more numerous rela- 

 tives. Stalking about in the shallower waters of the lake were groups of 



