AFRICA. 209 
nets, becaufe, when I brought them near my 
compafs, they moved the needle of it. Perhaps^ 
however, this magnetic property might be 
owing to particles of iron diftind from the 
cryftais, which blackened the whole mafs, and 
imparted to it its own colour. 
The bees and fhrubs were frequented, as I 
have already obferved, by an immenfe quantity 
of birds of new fpecies. There were a great 
many little ones, in particular, on a fort of 
broom with yellow campanlform flowers, and 
on a jeflamiii refembling both in leaf and fiowet 
that of Spain, but with fcarcely any fmelL 
Each fpecies of bird had its favourite tree,, 
which it never quitted. For inftanccj there was 
a thorny flirub on which I faw hundreds of 
little paroquets, and I faw none upon any other^ 
No doubt they were attracted by the fruit and 
nuts of the bufh. This bird, larger than that 
improperly called the Brafilian fparrow, has 
the bill of a faffron yellow inclltiing to red ; 
the forepart of the neck is rofe-coloured, and 
the forehead fomewhat deeper ; the tail, which 
is very fhort, is green, dafhed with rofe-coiouf 
and black, the rump blue, and the reft of the 
body green. It is a new fpecies. 
Vol. II. P . • la 
