The Tinamous 



79 



instantly." He also mentions once riding over the pampas in the face of a violent 

 wind, when a bird was startled from under the feet of his horse. " The bird flew 

 up into the air vertically, and, beating its wings violently, and with a swiftness 

 far exceeding its ordinary flight, continued to ascend until it reached a vast 

 height, then came down again, whirling round and round, striking the earth 

 a very few yards from the spot where it rose, and crushing itself to a pulp by 

 the tremendous force of the fall." The explanation was that the strong wind 



FIG. 27. Rufous Tinamou, Rhynchotus rufescens. 



had directed the flight upward with a force that the bird could not control, until 

 it was exhausted and fell. 



Some of the Tinamous inhabit open, grassy country, and depend much for 

 safety in concealment among the grasses which they closely resemble in color, 

 while others are quite as distinctly forest birds. They subsist largely upon seeds 

 and berries, and they have a very distinct and flute-like song. They are, how- 

 ever, looked upon as rather stupid birds, some of the species being very tame, 

 often coming around the houses, when they are killed with a stick, whip, or 

 stone. They are often caught by a horseman riding around them in a decreas- 

 ing spiral, or even picked up with a noose on a pole. The fact that they are 

 esteemed as food combined with their stupidity and confiding disposition have 

 brought about their extermination in certain localities. They are rather solitary in 

 their habits, although several may usually be found within a short distance of one 

 another, and occasionally they are found in coveys of a dozen or more. The nest 



