ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY BULLETIN 



1375 



would be his home until he was liberated in his 

 roomier quarters in the Reptile House of the 

 Zoological Park. 



There is little doubt but that bushmasters 

 hibernate, or at least hide themselves away dur- 

 ing the dry seasons. When the rains begin, 

 thej^ appear, but spend most of their time coiled 

 flatly among dead leaves in the dark jungle. 

 Unless actually stepped upon they will not 

 strike at a passing man or large animal. The 

 next one I came across proved this. A few days 

 after we caught the big fellow, I was walking 

 in another part of the forest and found one less 

 than four feet long. Hope, one of my convict 

 trail-cutters, was walking ahead when something 

 impelled me to look down. There at my feet was 

 the dread spiral, which Hope had stepped 

 directly over. He had even flicked a leaf with 

 his bare foot partly across the head of the 

 snake. When I called to him and told him, he 

 leaned against a tree and turned as pale as 

 his pigment would allow him. 



I had no cord, and was a long distance from 

 home, so I cut a light reed and with a slight 

 blow on the neck disabled the snake so that 

 he was quite harmless. It is astonishing how 

 slight a tap will derange that wonderful chain 

 of vertebrae which forms almost the entire 

 skeleton. I realized why it is that for all their 

 deadliness, these serpents recognize discretion 

 as the best policy in their meetings with 

 creatures of large size. 



I do not think that in these dark jungles 

 bushmasters are especially nocturnal. They 

 seem to move about regardless of the time of 

 day or night. But their movements are slow, 

 and rather than pursue their prey, their forte 

 in life is waiting, with all the patience in the 

 world, for some small creature to cross the spot 

 which they have rendered more deadly than 

 any pitfall or trap of human devising. 



are recognized. The range of the species rep- 

 resented by our bird extends through Vene- 

 zuela, British Guiana and northern Brazil. It 

 occurs very locally in mountainous jjortions of 

 the interior, and appears to be nowhere abun- 

 dant. It has been more or less persecuted by 

 feather hunters, but its habitat is so inaccessible 

 that it seems unlikeh^ that it has suffered very 

 considerably from this cause. The Indians use 

 them to some extent in their feather ornaments, 

 but seem to prefer the beaks and plumage of 

 toucans and macaws. 



An interesting habit of the Cock-of-the-Rock 

 is its gathering in parties at the beginning of 

 the breeding season. A suitable spot is select- 

 ed, and the males, ranged in a circle, perform a 

 curious dance, each springing from a low 

 branch to the ground and returning with a 

 quick leap. A circular space is soon cleared of 

 leaves and other debris, leaving a clean, well- 

 packed ring, which is easily recognized. 



The male Cock-of-the-Rock is a deep orange, 

 with black wings and tail. The head is orna- 

 mented with a long, perpendicular crest, com- 

 posed of two portions, one of which rises from 

 each side of the head, meeting in the center. 

 The outer secondaries of the wing are produced 

 into long, decorative filaments. The female is 

 a sombre brown, tinged here and there with 

 orange. 



The plumage of the Cock-of-the-Rock, like 

 that of many other red and orange birds, fades 

 in captivit}''. Our present specimen is slightly 

 duller than a wild bird, but still is very bril- 

 liant. These birds, on rare occasions, have 

 been taken to England, the largest arrival being 

 six birds from British Guiana in 1911. From 

 all acounts, they are not among the hardiest of 

 captives, and no great success in keeping them 

 has been attained. Our bird, however, has been 

 in captivity for some months, and shows every 

 evidence of perfect health. 



L. S. C. 



THE COCK-OF-THE-ROCK. 



A SUPERB, adult male Cock-of-the-Rock, 

 (Riipicola rupicola) has just come to us 

 from the Tropical Research Station, es- 

 tablished in British Guiana by the Zoological 

 Society. It is the first specimen of its genus 

 to reach us, and is the most valuable accession 

 among the birds received so far this year. 



The Cock-of-the-Rock belongs to the family' 

 Cotingidae, the chatterers, and is allied to the 

 bell-bird and the umbrella-bird. Four forms, 

 all from northern and western South America, 



A Hybrid Bear. — Sometime ago the Bul- 

 letin announced the birth of an interesting 

 hybrid bear, the parents being a Russian brown 

 bear (mother) and the long-eared sloth bear. 

 At that time the infant was in the den with 

 the mother, and there was much speculating as 

 to what its characteristics would be when it 

 did appear. This young bear is now rollicking 

 about the den, and is quite remarkable in form 

 and coloration. It is black like its male 

 parent, witli an exceptionally elongated head 

 and long ears. Its antics add much to public 

 interest in our collection of fun-producing bears. 



