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  Mr. 
  E. 
  Hartert 
  on 
  the 
  Birds 
  of 
  

  

  on 
  CurayaOj 
  and 
  on 
  the 
  east 
  coast 
  of 
  Bonaire 
  ; 
  while 
  Aruba^ 
  

   for 
  almost 
  its 
  entire 
  length 
  on 
  the 
  leeward 
  side, 
  is 
  skirted 
  by 
  

   a 
  coral-reef, 
  inside 
  of 
  which 
  is 
  a 
  calm 
  and 
  beautiful 
  lagoon. 
  

  

  The 
  interior 
  parts 
  of 
  the 
  islands 
  consist 
  of 
  sedimentary 
  

   rocks, 
  in 
  several 
  places 
  pierced 
  by 
  volcanic 
  rocks, 
  while 
  on 
  

   Aruba 
  grey 
  granite 
  is 
  said 
  to 
  predominate, 
  and 
  many 
  quartz 
  

   veins 
  are 
  found, 
  containing 
  a 
  considerable 
  amount 
  of 
  gold. 
  

   Deposits 
  of 
  phosphate 
  are 
  distributed 
  over 
  the 
  islands 
  {cf. 
  

   Blackburn, 
  ' 
  Aruba- 
  Phosphate,^ 
  p. 
  5). 
  

  

  The 
  geologist. 
  Professor 
  K. 
  Martin, 
  who 
  explored 
  the 
  

   islands 
  in 
  1885, 
  came 
  to 
  the 
  conclusion 
  that 
  they 
  were 
  

   formerly 
  atolls; 
  but 
  his 
  conclusion 
  is 
  questionable, 
  for 
  a 
  

   similar 
  coralline 
  belt 
  is 
  found 
  on 
  many 
  West-Indian 
  islands. 
  

  

  The 
  same 
  naturalist 
  {cf. 
  '^Bericht 
  iiber 
  eine 
  Reise 
  nach 
  

   Niederlandisch 
  Westindien,' 
  1887) 
  came 
  to 
  the 
  conclusion 
  

   " 
  that 
  the 
  islands 
  of 
  Aruba 
  and 
  Curacao 
  (the 
  materials 
  col- 
  

   lected 
  on 
  Bonaire 
  were 
  too 
  incomplete 
  for 
  any 
  conclusions) 
  

   are 
  zoologically 
  closely 
  allied 
  to 
  the 
  continent 
  of 
  South 
  

   America, 
  and, 
  on 
  the 
  other 
  hand, 
  that 
  the 
  fauna 
  of 
  both 
  

   diflfers 
  in 
  many 
  points. 
  ^^ 
  Both 
  these 
  conclusions 
  of 
  the 
  

   learned 
  author 
  — 
  whose 
  excellent 
  book 
  was 
  of 
  much 
  service 
  

   to 
  me 
  — 
  must, 
  however, 
  be 
  qualified 
  in 
  some 
  way, 
  although 
  

   they 
  are 
  not 
  altogether 
  wrong. 
  It 
  is 
  true 
  that 
  the 
  greater 
  

   part 
  of 
  the 
  fauna 
  is 
  similar 
  to 
  that 
  of 
  the 
  northern 
  parts 
  of 
  

   Venezuela, 
  but 
  there 
  are 
  likewise 
  a 
  great 
  many 
  forms 
  of 
  

   West-Indian 
  origin, 
  and 
  this 
  not 
  only 
  among 
  the 
  birds, 
  but 
  

   also 
  among 
  the 
  reptiles, 
  and, 
  according 
  to 
  Dr. 
  Kobelt, 
  very 
  

   strikingly 
  among 
  the 
  land-shells. 
  The 
  ornis 
  and 
  the 
  whole 
  

   fauna 
  of 
  the 
  three 
  islands 
  are 
  generally 
  similar, 
  although 
  

   there 
  are 
  some 
  remarkable 
  diflFerences. 
  

  

  The 
  idea 
  that 
  the 
  fauna 
  of 
  these 
  islands 
  is 
  the 
  same 
  as 
  

   that 
  of 
  the 
  adjacent 
  parts 
  of 
  the 
  continent, 
  together 
  with 
  

   their 
  barren 
  and 
  rocky 
  appearance 
  from 
  the 
  sea, 
  and 
  the 
  

   exaggerated 
  reports 
  of 
  their 
  heat 
  and 
  dryness, 
  are 
  perhaps 
  

   the 
  reasons 
  why 
  the 
  ornis 
  of 
  Aruba 
  and 
  Bonaire 
  remained 
  

   unexplored 
  until 
  my 
  researches, 
  and 
  why 
  that 
  of 
  Curasao 
  

   has 
  only 
  quite 
  recently, 
  and 
  incompletely, 
  been 
  explored. 
  

  

  No 
  tropical 
  forest 
  is 
  found 
  on 
  the 
  islands, 
  but 
  trees 
  of 
  

  

  