8 
The Guiana Nightingale. 
the flora in the environs showed no great variation* the little straAvberry- 
lasting fruit of the small PskJiuin turhhiiflorum Mart., called Piriko by 
the Indians, as well as that of the Eugenia, gave us a cordial that was 
much sought after . The fruit of another species was of almost the same 
size as Psidium poinifcruni,: its bushes are three to four feet high, — the 
Indians called this one Cunang. Although we managed to collect so much 
of the fruit, we only succeeded in finding one blossom to allow of our 
identifying these two interesting species. 
19. As there was nothing for the Indians to do in the enforced inter- 
val they daily followed their love of hunting, and never returned home 
without a rich harvest in deer, large birds, like Mijctcria^ the Glutton 
(Sawiwi of the Macusi) and ducks. One of the Mycteria with its wings 
outstretched measured 7 feet 2 inches. When the bird is still young, its 
flesh is very like beef, and Hamlet prepared such excellent cuts from th'j 
breast that they could liardly be distinguished from "beef «teaks," but 
witli older birds other chcAving organs and muscles than oiirs 
were certainly necessary for masticating it. The thick bush 
at the riverside re-echoed every mo]-iiing and evening Avitli the 
lovely yer mournful song of the beautiful trupial which I saw 
here for the first time in a wild state. It is only found Avithin the 
hemmed-in brush Avood of the banks of the savannah streams, and accord- 
ing to the statement of tlie Indians most frequently on the M.ahu, IMrara 
and Takutu. It hangs its bag-liko nest, Avhich is built of the finest blades 
of grass, on arborescent bushes that grow on the edg<> of Ihe savannah. 
In GeorgetoAvn it is generally valued for its loA^ely note, and is eagerly 
bouffht by the colonists from the Indians who bring it doAvn only to die 
prematurely on account of its apparent inability to endure close confine- 
ment. Althou.£h I found this bird tame in almost every settlement on the 
journey, it ncA-ertheless had perfect freedom to fly wherever it liked. In 
Gl orgetoAvn, the average price for a trupial, as the colonists term it, is 
five dollars. Ou'' Macusis call it Murumuruta, and the Brazilians, the 
Guiana ^Nightingale. Another light brown bird which I also found here 
for the first time Avns tlie Fiimariiis Icucopnf^ Sw. it also üa'cs 
in the brushwood on the lianks of the savannah streams. Shortly 
l»efore sunrise and sunset its clear piping A'oice re-echoed throughout the 
scrub, for which reason it served from r.oAV ouAvards as the Reveille for 
break of day and commencement of work. Tiie gari'ulous '"Q'est-ce-que- 
dit" was just ns plentiful. Tin's genus, with its sd mmerous species, 
seems to be spread over the Avhole of Guiana; the Macusis call it Sette- 
qui. The pirais in the Pirara were just as abundant as the electric 
eels which were caught in quantities on the hook : as soon as one of the 
latter took the bait, it was immediately felt by the shock, on account o*" the 
instantaneous electrical discharge, that gave rise to many a comic scene. 
* — Lieania incana Aubl.. JTtI icfe-rex puazvmni>foli/i, Sirin h'ni folia C'av.. Pavoni'^ :<peciomY{nmh. 
Knnth., P. eancellnfn Oav., Melodn'a fasHculata Reuth., M. mel\n<tnpfoHa Beiith.. Tihoiichina ax-pern. 
Mimosa errmporum Benth,, Nepfioiia poh/p/ii/Ua B^nih., Rhi^ncanfhera ociminatq Btnih., Micopid 
fallax DeC, 
