1917.) Chapman, Distribution of Bird-life in Colombia. 63 



June, July, August, October and November, with violent wind and hail 

 storms in July. The bird-life is abundant and interesting. 



" On the return trip we stopped at a place called Frijolera (alt. 5000 ft.) 

 just this side of the town of Valdivia, principally to collect mammals for 

 which the country looked promising; here we took many more fine birds, 

 and a good many mammals of numerous species." 



Exploration of the Paramillo. — " The name Paramillo is applied to that 

 lofty spur of the Andes jutting out of the western range slightly below lati- 

 tude 7°. To explore this section the expedition left its base at Medellin 

 on January 14, 1915, with equipment sufficient for about three weeks' 

 actual field-work. 



" The very good trail strikes toward the northwest, ascending the moun- 

 tainside rapidly, so that four hours after starting we had reached the top 

 of the range. A great cleft forms a natural pass 8750 feet high, and saves 

 a climb of at least an additional 1000 feet. The slope on the other (western) 

 side is more gentle. 



"We were immediately impressed with the barren nature of the country 

 for, with the exception of a few patches of low brush and the clumps of 

 withered grass, no vegetation was to be seen; and an occasional glimpse of 

 the Cauca River far below suggested the picture of a broad yellow ribbon 

 lying upon a brown, rocky plain. 



" That night we reached a small town called San Geronimo, elevation 

 3200 feet. Near the town small patches of ground are irrigated with water 

 brought from mountain brooks and distributed through a network of arti- 

 ficial ditches; in these spots rice, corn and pasturage grow but rather 

 scantily on account of the rocky nature of the soil. 



"Next morning we were on the road before six; a few hours later, on 

 crossing the top of a small ridge, we came suddenly upon the town of Sope- 

 tran completely hidden in a fertile little valley filled with palms, mangoes, 

 and other beautiful trees ; the cluster of some hundreds of neat white houses 

 with red tile roofs, the well-kept streets, and the multitude of birds flutter- 

 ing among the deep green foliage rendered Sopetran quite the most attractive 

 town of its size I have seen in Tropical America. At noon we reached the 

 Cauca and crossed that sluggish, muddy stream on a well-built suspension 

 bridge probably 800 feet long. Gravel banks flank the sides of the river, 

 and bare sandy islands divide its waters; the elevation at this point is 

 approximately 2000 feet. One league beyond the Cauca lies the town of 

 Antioquia, altitude 2600 feet. The valley of the Cauca is here five to ten 

 miles wide, rolling, and supports no vegetation except occasional clumps of 

 mimosas and cacti which rather add to its desert-like appearance. The 

 high ranges of the Western and Central Andes hem it in like huge walls 

 of pink clay and sandstone. 



