374 OUR SEARCH FOR A WILDERNESS, 



Abary River, with the line of dense growth on one side and 

 the level savanna on the other. 



A study of an individual pair of birds is given in Figs. 152 

 to 156, and the actions of these two birds were so typical of 

 Hoatzins that an account of them will apply to the species in 

 general. I made these photographs from a boat, standing 

 on the thwarts while Milady guided it through the brush. 



We flushed the female from her nest (marked by a circle 

 in Fig. 150) and she flew to a branch some eight feet higher 

 (Fig. 152). The male then appeared from a tree beyond 

 (centre of Fig. 152). We remained perfectly quiet, and the 

 next photograph shows her tail-on, looking about, while the 

 male, who has flown nearer, is watching us suspiciously. 

 Fig. 154 shows the male on another perch, still more alarmed, 

 and a moment later he thrashed his way out of sight. 

 Meanwhile the female had rediscovered us and crouched 

 down (Fig. 155) hoping to avoid observation, but as we 

 pushed closer to the nest, she rose on her perch, spread tail 

 and wings to the widest (Fig. 156), her scarlet eyes flashing, 

 and uttering a last despairing hiss, launched out for a few 

 yards. At this moment, as may be seen in the same pic- 

 ture, a second pair of birds left their nest in the next clump 

 of undergrowth and raised their discordant notes in protest 

 at our intrusion. 



The assertion which we made last year — Milady having 

 been the first to observe it — that Hoatzins use their prima- 

 ries as fingers, in the same way that the chicks and partly 

 grown young use their wing claws, has been received with 

 some doubt, and I am glad to offer a photograph (Fig. 156) 

 as evidence. In the right wing of the Hoatzin, the thumb 

 feathers are plainly visible, with their inner edges fretted 

 away, while the first six primaries also show signs of severe 

 wear, such as would be expected from the rough usage to 

 which they are put. 



