PIUM FLIES 



223 



of rounded outline, which continues hence for twenty 

 miles to the mouth of the Eio Negro, and forms the 

 eastern shore of that river. Many houses of settlers, built 

 at a considerable elevation on the wooded heights, now 

 enlivened the river banks. One of the first objects which 

 here greeted us was a beautiful bird we had not hitherto 

 met with, namely, the scarlet and black tanager (Ram- 

 phocoelus nigrogularis), flocks of which were seen sporting 

 about the trees on the edge of the water, their flame- 

 coloured liveries lighting up the masses of dark-green 

 foliage. 



The weather, from the 14th to the i8th, was wretched ; 

 it rained sometimes for twelve hours in succession, not 

 heavily, but in a steady drizzle, such as we are familiar 

 with in our English climate. We landed at several places 

 on the coast, Penna to trade as usual, and I to ramble 

 in the forest in search of birds and insects. In one spot 

 the wooded slope enclosed a very picturesque scene : a 

 brook, flowing through a ravine in the high bank, fell in 

 many little cascades to the broad river beneath, its 

 margins decked out with an infinite variety of beautiful 

 plants. Wild bananas arched over the watercourse, and 

 the trunks of the trees in its vicinity were clothed with 

 ferns, large-leaved species belonging to the genus Lygo- 

 dium, which, like Osmunda, have their spore-cases collected 

 together on contracted leaves. On the i8th, we arrived 

 at a large fazenda (plantation and cattle-farm), called 

 Jatuarana. A rocky point here projects into the stream, 

 and as we found it impossible to stem the strong current 

 which whirled round it, we crossed over to the southern 

 shore. Canoes, in approaching the Rio Negro, generally 

 prefer the southern side on account of the slackness of 

 the current near the banks. Our progress, however, was 

 most tediously slow, for the regular east wind had now 

 entirely ceased, and the vento de cima or wind from up 

 river, having taken its place, blew daily for a few hours, 

 dead against us. The weather was oppressively close, 

 and every afternoon a squall arose, which, however, as 

 it came from the right quarter and blew for an hour or 

 two, was very welcome. We made acquaintance on this 

 coast with a new insect pest, the Pium, a minute fly. 

 two-thirds of a line in length, which here commences its 

 reign, and continues henceforward as a terrible scourge 

 along the upper river, or Solimoens, to the end of the 



