710 THE PAMPAS. 



from the still savage Indians who roam throughout the region 

 in search of plunder. 



It is on these plains that the little bizcacha in vast num- 

 bers form their burrows ; by the sitle of which, during the 

 day, their small friends the owls of the Pampas take up their 

 posts, and watch the passers-by. Vast herds of horses and 

 cattle now roam in unrestrained freedom across them. Here 

 the tall rhea, the American ostrich, with outstretched wings 

 runs swiftly across the plain. Towards its southern bound- 

 aries the huanacu and the deer — Cervus campestris — in 

 large herds range at large, while the pools and marshes are 

 inhabited by enormous flocks of wild fowl of all descriptions. 

 Here hundreds of beautiful flamingoes may be seen rising 

 when alarmed, and forming a rosy cloud of plumage in the 

 blue sky — the tints shading gradually from the delicate pink 

 of their necks to the deep red of their long wings; while many 

 others of the feathered tribes, — some with long legs, others 

 with huge beaks, — fly across the placid pools, their strange 

 cries and varied notes sounding through the air. 



The eastern portion of this enormous district in winter 

 presents a peculiarly rich aspect — herds of wild cattle graz- 

 ing in full liberty on the luxuriant clover which then covers 

 the ground. As spring advances, a totally different plant 

 takes the place of the clover, and in three or four weeks an 

 extraordinary change has occurred. The whole region then 

 appears covered by a dense wood of enormous thistles, which 

 have shot up to a height of nearly twelve feet, and are now 

 in full bloom. So densely do they grow, that they present 

 an impenetrable barrier to man and horse, or even to the 

 strong-limbed cattle or wild beasts of the plain. The only 

 passage through them is by those paths which have been 



