Chap. IV. 
MOIiNlNG ON THE PRAIA. 
251 
lianas. They are enabled, by observing the turtles 
from this watch-tower, to ascertain the date of succes- 
sive deposits of eggs, and thus guide the commandante 
in fixing the time for the general invitation to the Ega 
people. . The turtles lay their eggs by night, leaving 
the water when nothing disturbs them, in vast crowds, 
and crawling to the central and highest part of the 
praia. These places are, of course, the last to go under 
water when, in unusually wet seasons, the river rises 
before the eggs are hatched by the heat of the sand. 
One could almost believe, from this, that the animals 
used forethought in choosing a place ; but it is simply 
one of those many instances in animals where uncon- 
scious habit has the same result as conscious prevision. 
The hours between midnight and dawn are the busiest. 
The turtles excavate with their broad, webbed paws 
deep holes in the fine sand : the first comer, in each 
case, making a pit about three feet deep, laying its eggs 
(about 120 in number) and covering them with sand ; 
the next making its deposit at the top of that of its 
predecessor, and so on until every pit is full. The whole 
body of turtles frequenting a praia does not finish laying 
in less than fourteen or fifteen days, even when there is 
no interruption. When all have done, the area (called 
by the Brazilians taboleiro) over which they have 
excavated, is distinguishable from the rest of the 
praia only by signs of the sand having been a little 
disturbed. 
On rising I went to join my friends. Few recollec- 
tions of my Amazonian rambles are more vivid and 
agreeable than that of my walk over the white sea of 
