IN THE PRIMEVAL FOREST 225 



full possession, while aloft in the tree tops spring 

 has begun her joyous reign. In the late winter 

 there may be another revival — a sort of secondary 

 spring and autumn combination, especially if the 

 weather changes from cold to continued warmth 

 and rain is abundant. 



In the tropics the new foliage is often renewed 

 with remarkable suddenness. I remember during 

 a winter spent in Spanish Honduras some fine 

 large Ficus trees which I greatly admired on 

 account of their glossy, dark green leaves. One 

 morning I noticed they were turning yellow, by 

 the next day brown, and I became alarmed, think- 

 ing the trees were dying. The third day nearly 

 all the leaves had fallen while pale new ones were 

 appearing. A week later the trees were newly 

 clothed with full-grown foliage. For years I 

 could not understand the reason for this strange 

 performance but finally in Rodway's In the Guiana 

 Forest I read the explanation of the mystery. 



The air in dense tropical forests is always more 



or less moist and growth may take place at any 



favorable opportunity. In the fearful struggle 



for light, space, and food, if an opening be made 



by the falling of a tree, the other trees round 

 15 



