286 



CHARLES DARWIN 



the sea on gently rising land. In the steep cliffs bordering 

 these valleys, there are some large caves, which no doubt 

 were originally formed by the waves: one of these is cele- 

 brated under the name of Cueva del Obispo ; having formerly 

 been consecrated. During the day I felt very unwell, and 

 from that time till the end of October did not recover. 



September 22nd. — We continued to pass over green plains 

 without a tree. The next day we arrived at a house near 

 Navedad, on the sea-coast, where a rich Haciendero gave us 

 lodgings. I stayed here the two ensuing days, and although 

 very unwell, managed to collect from the tertiary formation 

 some marine shells. 



24th. — Our course was now directed towards Valparaiso, 

 which with great difficulty I reached on the 27th, and was there 

 confined to my bed till the end of October. During this time 

 I was an inmate in Mr. Corfield's house, whose kindness to 

 me I do not know how to express. 



I will here add a few observations on some of the animals 

 and birds of Chile. The Puma, or South American Lion, is 

 not uncommon. This animal has a wide geographical range ; 

 being found from the equatorial forests, throughout the 

 deserts of Patagonia, as far south as the damp and cold 

 latitudes (53 0 to 54 0 ) of Tierra del Fuego. I have seen its 

 footsteps in the Cordillera of central Chile, at an elevation of 

 at least 10,000 feet. In La Plata the puma preys chiefly on 

 deer, ostriches, bizcacha, and other small quadrupeds; it there 

 seldom attacks cattle or horses, and most rarely man. In 

 Chile, however, it destroys many young horses and cattle, 

 owing probably to the scarcity of other quadrupeds : I heard, 

 likewise, of two men and a woman who had been thus killed. 

 It is asserted that the puma always kills its prey by springing 

 on the shoulders, and then drawing back the head with one 

 of its paws, until the vertebrae break: I have seen in Pata- 

 gonia the skeletons of guanacos, with their necks thus 

 dislocated. 



The puma, after eating its fill, covers the carcass with 

 many large bushes, and lies down to watch it. This habit is 

 often the cause of its being discovered; for the condors 

 wheeling in the air every now and then descend to partake 



