dead a few feet away, at the instant his 

 Indian guide, by his elbow, gave a cry of 

 terror, when a big jaguar raised up and 

 roared in his face — so intent had this 

 beast been in following the peccary's 

 trail. But it sprang away in a line with 

 the guide, so a shot could not be safely 

 fired. 



However, this adventure provided us 

 with fresh meat and a good museum 

 specimen (seepage 178). That night An- 

 derson, whose bed was on the floor be- 

 tween our cots, became restless, the usual 

 indication that the daily supply of ticks 

 had not been removed before retiring; 

 but when he held up several objects and 

 wanted to know if they were young tur- 

 tles, his knowledge of entomology was 

 enlarged on being told that they were a 

 very large species cf tick from the pec- 

 cary he had skinned on the floor of the 

 boat some hours before. 



BAT CAVES 



Many years ago large limestone caves 

 were discovered near the upper Chagres 

 and in these lived numerous bats, rang- 

 ing in size from a small species to the 

 huge so - called vampire, with a wing- 

 spread exceeding two feet (see page 185). 

 Formerly it was impossible to visit this 

 vicinity other than by an uncertain trail 

 through the ever-intruding jungle ; but 

 as the main stream and tributaries deep- 

 ened with the back waters from the lake, 

 the caves could be reached in a few hours 

 by launch. Under the guidance of a 

 former canal employee, an erstwhile 

 trapper and market hunter, we made a 

 trip on March 1. 



After going up the broad, inundated 

 valley of the Chagres some miles, we en- 

 tered a branch called the Chilibrillo — 

 narrow, deep, and tortuous, with no per- 

 ceptible current. As the boat glided 

 smoothly in the straight courses and 

 swerved violently at numerous turns, the 

 overhanging shrubbery and the flooded 

 palm trees marking the bed of a stream 

 formerly unnavigable for any kind of 

 craft, we realized more fully how the 

 new lake had opened up these canal-like 

 avenues of travel into the very heart of 

 the jungle (see page 183). 



After a run of five or six miles a cur- 

 rent became noticeable, and in a few min- 

 utes we came to a transverse ledge of 

 rock with a slight flow of water rippling 



^1 * 



/ 



I -*v> 



u 



| 



■HHHHHHi 



FLASHLIGHT OF A NOCTURNAL MONKEY 

 RESCUED FROM A FLOODED FOREST 



(see page 171) 



over it, indicating the end of the trip by 

 boat. While walking up the nearly dry 

 bed of the stream, it was plain that many 

 animals had sought the higher ground as 

 a refuge, for trails to the scattered pools 

 came in all directions, bearing the fresh 

 imprint of tapir, deer, peccary, agouti, 

 and the occasional claw - marks of the 

 jaguar and ocelot, while the frequent 

 roaring of the black howler showed this 

 big tenant of the tree-tops was also abun- 

 dant. The grotesque toucans vied with 

 the noisy parrots, while the calling of the 

 parrakeets and the peculiar chorus-like 

 calls of the chachalaca produced an im- 

 pression that must ever be associated 

 with jungle memories. Turning to the 

 right and going up a creek bottom, we 

 soon came in sight of the low entrance to 

 the caves, encircled with ferns, vines, and 

 flowering plants (see page 184). 



Lighting the lantern and stooping low, 

 we entered a corridor leading to a series 

 of interconnecting rooms with high ceil- 

 ings and dark and grimy walls, relieved 

 here and there by light-colored stalac- 

 tites, the tapering ends dripping with 

 limestone waters. In the central room, 

 both on the walls and ceiling, were great 

 clusters of bats segregated by species 

 and, as later examination showed, ac- 

 cording to sex. 



a zealous guide 



One big bunch, some 10 feet square 

 and containing hundreds of small bats, 

 was found on an end wall only 6 feet 

 from the ground and particularly well 

 situated for a flashlight picture. Our 

 local guide, filled with the enthusiasm of 

 the occasion, unbuckled his leather belt, 

 and before his action was anticipated be- 

 gan lashing them, so that in a moment 



i75 



