THE STRAIT OF MAGELLAN. 415 



greenish- flowered Orchid, the Bvpinnula mystacina, with 

 some of the segments of the perianth remarkably fimbriated. 

 After visiting the Placeres copper-mine, we spent some time 

 excavating graves for skulls, but without very great success, 

 and then rode on to Brilliador, the oldest mine, I believe, in 

 Chili, where we were very kindly received by Mr. Bennett, 

 who works the vein. Some days later, in the course of another 

 excursion among the hills in the neighbourhood of Compania in 

 Mr. Ffrench's company, I obtained some fine specimens of the 

 giant humming-bird (Fatagona gigas). Mr. Darwin has well 

 remarked of this species, that " whilst hovering over a flower, 

 it flaps its wings with a very slow and powerful movement, 

 totally different from that vibratory one common to most of 

 the species which produces the humming noise." While flying 

 about, its motions reminded me of those of a swallow. 



On the 29th of August I had a ramble in the neighbour- 

 hood of Serena, walking down to the sea-beach, where I 

 found hundreds of specimens of a bivalve, the Mesodesma 

 donacium, lying. In some fresh- water marshes I noticed two 

 men wading about waist-deep, apparently in search of some- 

 thing, and on approaching them, to inquire what they were 

 doing, I was informed they were catching " camarons," a 

 large species of prawn {Palcemon ccementarius) of an olive- 

 green colour, and provided with large claws. The capture of 

 these animals was carried on by one of the men holding a 

 wicker-work basket, into which the other shook armfuls of 

 weeds which he pulled up from the bottom of the water. 

 The prawns were then picked out from among these, and 

 transferred to a small bag, which the man holding the basket 

 had tied round his waist. In Gay's Historia Fisica de 

 Chili it is stated that this species of camaron is to be met 

 with " en los embocadores de las riveras, donde construyer 

 grandes cavidades que cubre con tierra." 



