Animals of Pern. 1725 



inhabitants of the forest the sancudos are an incessant torment. In no season of the 

 year, in no hour of the day or night, is there any respite from their attacks. Kubbing 

 the body with unctuous substances, together with the caustic juices of certain plants, 

 and at night enclosing one's self in a tent made ottucuyo, or 'cotton cloth,' or palm-tree 

 bast, are the only means of protection against their painful stings. The clothes com- 

 monly worn are not sufficient, for they are perforated by the long sting of the larger 

 species, particularly of the much-dreaded huir-pasimi-sancudo, or ' lip-gnat.' Regularly 

 every evening at twilight fresh swarms of these mischievous insects make their ap- 

 pearance. 



" The ticks (Ixodes) are a class of insects destined by nature for the suction of 

 plants ; but they often forsake trees, shrubs, and grasses, to fasten on man and other 

 animals. With their long sharp stings they make punctures, in which they insert 

 their heads, and thereby occasion very painful sores. These insects appear to have no 

 preference for any particular class of animals. They are often found on the hair of 

 dead Mammalia, and among the feathers of birds which have been shot ; even the 

 toad, the frog, and the scaly lizard, are not spared by them. Much more troublesome 

 than these insects are the antanas, which are not visible to the naked eye. They pe- 

 netrate the surface of the skin, and introduce themselves beneath it, where they propa- 

 gate with incredible rapidity ; and when some thousands of them are collected 

 together, a blackish spot appears, which quickly spreads. If these insects are not de- 

 stroyed when they first introduce themselves into the punctures, they multiply with 

 incalculable rapidity, destroying the skin, and all the tender parts in contact with it. 

 Washing with brandy, which is often found to be a remedy against the less mischiev- 

 ous isancos, is not sufficient for the removal of the antanas. For their extirpation the 

 only effectual remedy is frequently bathing the part affected with a mixture of spirits 

 of wine and corrosive sublimate. 



" Who can describe the countless myriads of ants which swarm through the forests ? 

 Every shrub is full of creeping life, and the decayed vegetation affords harbour for 

 some peculiar kinds of these insects. The large yellow puca cjcj is seen in multitudes 

 in the open air, and it even penetrates into the dwellings. This insect does not bite, 

 but its crawling creates great irritation to the skin. The small black yana cjcj, on the 

 contrary, inflicts most painful punctures. A very mischievous species of stinging ant 

 is the black sunchiron. This insect inflicts a puncture with a long sting, which he 

 carries in the rear of his body. The wound is exceedingly painful, and is sometimes 

 attended by dangerous consequences. My travelling companion, C. Klee, being stung 

 by one of these ants, suffered such severe pain and fever that he was for a short while 

 delirious. A few nights afterwards, a similar attack was made on myself during sleep. 

 It suddenly awoke me, and caused me to start up with a convulsive spring. I must 

 confess that I never, in my whole life, experienced such severe pain as I did at that 

 moment. 



" A most remarkable phenomenon is exhibited by the swarms of the species called 

 the naui-huacan-gigi* ' the great wandering ant.' They appear suddenly in trains of 

 countless myriads, and proceed forward in a straight direction, without stopping. The 

 small, the weak, and the neuters are placed in the centre, while the large and the 



* From naui, ' the eye,' huacay, ' to cry,' and gigi, ' the ant;' — so called by the 

 Indians, because the pain of its numerous stings brings tears into the eyes. 

 V Y 



