SCREAMER. i 9 



parts of the wings are pale rufous, appearing on the fhoulders and 

 edges of them, when clofed : at the bend of the wing are two 

 ftrong, fharp, horny, yellow fpurs, one above another, the upper- 

 moft an inch and a half in length : the belly, thighs, and vent are 

 white : the tail eight inches and a half long, and black : the legs 

 ftout and dufky : the fore claws moderately bent; the hind one 

 nearly ftraight, not unlike that of a Lark, and one inch in length. 



The female is faid to be like the male. Female. 



They are obferved to be always met with in pairs, and if one p LAC E an» 

 dies, the other mourns to death for the lofs. They frequent Manners. 

 places near the water, make a large nefl of mud, in the lhape 

 of an oven, upon the ground *, and lay two eggs, the fize of 

 thofe of a Goofe. The young are brought up in the neft till able 

 to lhift for themfelves : they have but one neft in a year, which 

 is in January or February, except the firft eggs are taken away, in 

 which cafe they make a fecond in April or May. . The young birds 

 are frequently eaten by the natives, though the colour of the flefh 

 is very dark ; that of the old ones is tough, and ill tafted. By 

 fome authors this fpecies is faid to feed on crabs and birds, fuch 

 as pigeons, poultry, and even to attack floeep and goats -, but this 

 is denied by others, who fay that its principal food is reptiles. In 

 the ftomach of one which M. Bajon differed, there were only 

 found herbs and feeds of plants j however he adds, that the bird 

 has no gizzard. This is a rare fpecies, is found in certain dis- 

 tricts in Cayenne, Guiana, Surinam, and other parts of South Ame- 

 rica, chiefly in the marfhes and wet favannas, and for the moft 



* Authors differ. Bajon fays, that it makes the neft both in thickets, at fome 

 diftance from the ground, and often among the rujhes. Fermin tells us, that it 

 builds on high trees. See Mem. fur Cay. and Defer. Surin. 



D %- part 



