40 ZOOLOGICAL GEOGRAPHY. [part hi. 



In the above list the species marked * extend to Tierra del 

 Fuego. It is a remarkable fact that so many of the species 

 belong to genera which are wholly Neotropical, and that the 

 specially South American families of Icteridee, Tyrannidse, Den- 

 drocolaptidne, Pteroptochidie, Trochilidas, and Conuridse, should 

 supply more than one-third of the species ; while the purely 

 South American genus Phrygilus, should be represented by four 

 species, three of which abound in Tierra del Fuego. 



Plate XVI. A Scene in the Andes of Chili, with characteristic 

 Animals. — The fauna of South Temperate America being most 

 fully developed in Chili, we place the scene of our illustration 

 in that country. In the foreground we have a pair of the 

 ])eautiful little chinchillas {Chinchilla Uinigcra), belonging to a 

 family of animals peculiar to the sub-region. There are only 

 two species of this group, both confined to the higher Andes, at 

 about 8000 feet elevation. Coming round a projecting ridge of 

 the mountain, are a herd of vicunas {Auchenia vicugna), one of 

 that pecuhar form of the camel tribe found in South America and 

 confined to its temperate and alpine regions. The upper bird is 

 a plant-cutter {Phytotoma rara), of sober plumage but allied to 

 the beautiful chatterers, though forming a separate family. Below, 

 standing on a rock, is a plover-like bird, the Thinocorus orhi- 

 gnianus, which is considered to belong to a separate family, 

 though allied to the plovers and sheath-bills. Its habits are, 

 however, more those of the quails or partridges, living inland in 

 dry and desert places, and feeding on plants, roots, and insects. 

 Above is a condor, the most characteristic bird of the high 

 Andes. 



Reptiles and Am-phihia. — These groups show, for the most part, 

 similar modifications of American and Neotropical forms, as those 

 we have seen to prevail among the birds. Snakes do not seem 

 to go very far south, but several South American genera of Colu- 

 Ijridte and DendrophidcC occur in Chili ; while Enophrys is pecu- 

 liar to La Plata, and Callorhimis to Patauonia, both belonsring 

 to the Colubridce. The Elapidte do not extend into the tem- 

 perate zone ; but Crasijedocephalus, one of the Crotalidte, occurs 

 at P>ahia Blanca in Patagonia (Lat. 40° S.) 



