192 THE HIGHLAND WILDERNESS [chap, vi 



for the mules ; but there was abundance of a small- 

 leaved plant eight or ten inches high — unfortunately, 

 not very nourishing — on which they fed greedily. In 

 such weather and over such muddy trails oxen travel 

 better than mules. 



In spite of the weather Cherrie and Miller, whom, 

 together with Father Zahm and Sigg, we had found 

 awaiting us, made good collections of birds and mam- 

 mals. Among the latter were opossums and mice that 

 were new to them. The birds included various forms 

 so unlike our home birds that the enumeration of their 

 names would mean nothing. One of the most interesting 

 was a large black-and-white woodpecker, the white pre- 

 dominating in the plumage. Several of these wood- 

 peckers were usually found together. They were showy, 

 noisy, and restless, and perched on twigs, in ordinary 

 bird fashion, at least as often as they clung to the 

 trunks in orthodox wood-pecker style. The prettiest 

 bird was a tiny manakin, coal-black, with a red-and- 

 orange head. 



On February 2 the rain ceased, although the sky 

 remained overcast and there were occasional showers. 

 I walked oif with my rifle for a couple of leagues ; at 

 that distance, from a slight hillock, the mist columns 

 of the falls were conspicuous in the landscape. The 

 only mammal I saw on the walk was a rather hairy 

 armadillo, with a flexible tail, which I picked up and 

 brought back to Miller ; it showed none of the speed of 

 the nine-banded armadillos we met on our jaguar-hunt. 

 Judging by its actions, as it trotted about before it saw 

 me, it must be diurnal in habits. It was new to the 

 collection. 



I spent much of the afternoon by the waterfall. 

 Under the overcast sky the great cataract lost the deep 



