THE STRAIT OF MAGELLAN. 39 



(Dr. Campbell and Mr. Bedwell, my associates on most of my 

 excursions), I landed in the morning, and crossed from the 

 city of Eio to the opposite side of the harbour in one of the 

 odd-looking steamers, like Noah's arks, which are constantly 

 plying to and fro. Landing at Mctheroy, we struck into a 

 path leading up a wooded hill, from the summit of which we 

 gained beautiful views of the harbour with its islands. We 

 obtained a number of species of butterflies, some large bees, 

 ants, and spiders, as well as a curious nest of a lepidopterous 

 insect (Oiketicus) hanging from a twig. This was about three 

 inches long, of an elongated form, tapering to the free and 

 attached extremities, and was constructed of small pieces of 

 stick, covered with a thin gray papyraceous substance similar 

 to that of which wasps' nests are made, and lined with a very 

 tough woolly material. I ascended a neighbouring hill, the 

 summit of which was crowned with palms, by myself, and 

 was greatly impressed by the luxuriance of the vegetation, 

 noticing, among other objects, a great aloe-plant (Agave) 

 growing high up in the fork of a tree. On the way down, 

 there being no path, I lost my way, and not till after a severe 

 struggle through the intricacies of a thicket, where half the 

 plants appeared to be endowed with thorns or prickles, and a 

 species of palm (Badris), the entire stem of which was clothed 

 with black needle-like spines, nearly two inches long, specially 

 abounded, succeeded in emerging from the wood near the 

 edge of the harbour, at a distance of some miles from where 

 I had left my companions. 



The two following days were spent in excursions in the 

 same neighbourhood, and a variety of zoological specimens col- 

 lected, including a batrachian (Cystignathus ocellatus), taken 

 in a pool of water ; several specimens of a small Bulinius (B. 

 papT/raceus) found in a torpid state on walls ; some curious 



