THE VOYAGE OF THE BEAGLE 



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however, have no idea of defence; even a single dog will 

 secure one of these large animals, till the huntsman can come 

 up. In many of their habits they are like sheep in a flock. 

 Thus when they see men approaching in several directions 

 on- horseback, they soon become bewildered, and know not 

 which way to run. This greatly facilitates the Indian method 

 of- hunting, for they are thus easily driven to a central point, 

 and are encompassed. 



The guanacos readily take to the water: several times at 

 Port Valdes they were seen swimming from island to island. 

 Byron, in his voyage, says he saw them drinking salt water. 

 Some of our officers likewise saw a herd apparently drinking 

 the briny fluid from a salina near Cape Blanco. I imagine 

 in several parts of the country, if they do not drink salt 

 water, they drink none at all. In the middle of the day they 

 frequently roll in the dust, in saucer-shaped hollows. The 

 males fight together; two one day passed quite close to me, 

 squealing and trying to bite each other; and several were 

 shot with their hides deeply scored. Herds sometimes appear 

 to set out on exploring parties: at Bahia Blanca, where, 

 within thirty miles of the coast, these animals are extremely 

 unfrequent, I one day saw the tracks of thirty or forty, which 

 had come in a direct line to a muddy salt-water creek. They 

 then must have perceived that they were approaching the 

 sea, for they had wheeled with the regularity of cavalry, and 

 had returned back in as straight a line as they had advanced. 

 The guanacos have one singular habit, which is to me quite 

 inexplicable; namely, that on successive days they drop their 

 dung in the same defined heap. I saw one of these heaps 

 which was eight feet in diameter, and was composed of a 

 large quantity. This habit, according to M. A. d'Orbigny, is 

 common to all the species of the genus; it is very useful to 

 the Peruvian Indians, who use the dung for fuel, and are 

 thus saved the trouble of collecting it. 



The guanacos appear to have favourite spots for lying 

 down to die. On the banks of the St. Cruz, in certain cir- 

 cumscribed spaces, which were generally bushy and all near 

 the river, the ground was actually white with bones. On one 

 such spot I counted between ten and twenty heads. I par- 

 ticularly examined the bones; they did not appear, as some 



