J.J.QUELCH. 127 



support of the weight of the bird when perching, (3) the ab- 

 sence of the central carina or keel from the sternum, (4) the 

 presence of an interclavicle, (5) the fusion of the clavicles 

 with the sternum and the coracoids, with several other note- 

 worthy characteristics, specialize this bird as the most remark- 

 able of all living forms of its class. 



As will have been inferred from the enormous amount of 

 forest and uncleared lands in Guiana, next to nothing is 

 known of the nesting habits of the greater number of our 

 birds ; and a wide but difficult field for exploration lies in 

 this direction. Many of the coast-birds have been well 

 studied, and also the chief of the game-birds, the eggs of 

 which are often placed under the common hen, and the 

 brood reared. The Muscovy Duck well illustrates the ad- 

 vantages to be derived from the domestication of a wild 

 species ; and equal advantages would seem to lie in the 

 direction of the large Curassow or Powis {Crax aiecior), the 

 species of Maroodi {Penelope), and the Maams (Ti7iamics) 

 — the flesh of all of which is very delicate. The birds, too, 

 are very hardy — the Powis, in particular, becoming so tame 

 and of a nature so pugnacious as to supply the place almost 

 of a watch-dog in the yard for keeping out intruders. 



Touching for a moment on the obtrusiveness of bird- 

 life in Guiana, I might mention that the birds commonly 

 met with in the towns and villages and their surroundings 

 include such forms as the Qu'est-ce-qu'il-dit {Pitangus sul- 

 phuratus) and similar species of Tyrant Shrikes ; the Cuckoos, 

 like the Ani or Old Witch {Crotophaga ani major) ; the Wren 

 {Troglodytes furvus) ; Icterine birds or Hang-nests, like the 

 Robin {Leistes guianensis), the Mocking-Oriole {Cassiciis 

 persiais), the Yellow Oriole or Plantain Bird {Icterus xan- 

 thormcs), the Blackbird or Black Oriole {Qtiiscahis lugubris) ; 

 the Thrush {Tardus albiventris) ; ih^ Tanagers of the genera 

 Tanagra, Rhamphoccelus, Saltator ; Swallows of the genera 

 Progne and Tachycineta ; Finches of the genus Spermophila ; 

 Ground-Doves {Chamcepelia) ; various species of Humming- 



