The Marismas of Guadalquivir 95 
by masses of ducks, huddled together like dusky islets; while 
further away several army-corps of geese were striving, with 
sonorous gabble, to tear up tuberous roots of spear - grass 
(castaiuela) from sun-baked mud. 
It was a rifle-shot at these last that finally set the whole host 
on wing—an indescribable spectacle, hurrying hordes everywhere 
outflanked by the glinting black and pink glamour of flamingoes. 
Then the noise—the reverberating roar of wings, blending with 
¢ or 
f 
‘““FLAMINGOES OVER” 
a babel of croaks and gabblings, whistles and querulous pipes, 
punctuated by shriller bi-tones, . . . we give that up. 
A long ride in prospect precluded serious operations to-night, 
but towards dusk we lined out our four guns, and in half an hour 
loaded up the panniers of the carrier-ponies with nearly three score 
ducks and geese. 
An hour before the morning’s dawn we were in position to 
await the earliest geese. Hxperience had taught the chief fight- 
lines, and these, over many miles of marsh, were commanded 
by lines of sunken tubs. These, however, the exceptional 
conditions had rendered temporarily useless. Our tubs lay miles 
