4^ 



Prinze MaDcirrliüar^s 



ing woods, whicli were mingled with cocoa-palms, we shot several 

 very small owls, of the kind which the inhabitants call cahure^^ but 

 which must not be mistaken for that so called by marcgraf. 

 We felled some palmetto-palms, which are frequent here, on ac- 

 count of their pith ; this tree belongs to the neatest and slenderest 

 of the cocoa kind ; its stem is a thin, high shaft, covered with rings ; 

 a small top of from eight to ten ; bright green leaves of the shape 

 of quills move high above in the air ; under this beautiful head 

 ornament stands, on the silver grey stem, an addition of the lively 

 green colour of the leaves, in the upper part of which the young 

 leaves lie rolled and folded together, they contain, in their middle, 

 the tender yet unopened blossoms, but those already formed break 

 out from under the green cover. If this addition to the stem for 

 the cover of the young leaves be cut off, the interior is found so 

 tender and pithy, that it may be even ealen raw, but when it is 

 cooked it is a still better food. We found the -wood very hard, 

 and it cost not much trouble to cut down the tree with the wood^ 

 knife (facao.) The toccam palm was likewise blooming in marshy 

 places, as also in the sandy parts were a new kind stachytarpheta, 

 and a pretty round cactus^ similar to the rnarmnillaris, which has 

 in its upper surface white wool, which contains small deep-red 

 flowers. Mr. Sellow considered this kind to be new. Our orni- 

 thological collections were not umcii increased here, for excepting 

 a few marsh-birds, we found very little that was new. The sabiah 

 da praya {the coast-thrush, tardus , orpheus, Linn.) sings along the 

 whole of this coast, which, with but an indifferent plumage, has a 

 beautiful note, and may be reckoned one of the finest singing-birds 

 in Brazil. The small white geclw^ was very frequent on the 

 buildings, running about the perpendicular walls, as also the 

 lizard with the black collar ;X they are spread over the whole of 

 the "country that I have seen. On the banks we found very few 

 mussels, and also here in the marshes we saw the above-mentioned 

 nest of a kind of wasp, [pelopcsus lunatus, Fabr.) 



From Paulist a we followed the dov/ns. Large marshes and la- 

 goas grown over with reeds, in which the grazing cattle and horses 

 are often wading to the middle, extend into the country ; lapwings 



* Sirixferrughiea, 6 inches 7-tenths long, rusty-red-, with some pale yellow or white 

 spots on the scapular and wing feathers : a great white sp^ot on the under part of the 

 neck ;■ tail unspotted, rust colour ; the lower parts of the body bright yellowish and 

 mixed with white, with rust- coloured long stripes ; iris deep yellow. This ov/i, without 

 ears, seems to bear some relation to Azara's Cabiirt. 



-}- Probably Daiidhis gecko-spinicanila. 



^ Stcllio torquatus appears to be related to, or the ^?imQ stcUio qvetz-paleo-^Dnv - 

 dill. This species varies very much in colour. When young it has dark long stiipc« 

 on its back, which disxppear when it grows old ; then it turns to a süver-grey, spotted 

 with shining purple, and copper -coloured, and sometimes, brighter dots ; the criteri®a of 

 the species, howeyer, is always an oblong black spot, on the side of the neck, before the 

 shoulder, as likewise three dark stripes running down in a perpendicular direction over the 

 closed eye-Iide. The lizard with the black collar is called oü ih. i eastei n coast lajdiia^ 



