77 
upwards of two metres in height. It would be useless to add 
that the most beautiful flowers are everywhere to be found, 
and that a great quantity of gums, resins, and balsams form a 
part of the rich produce of this magnificent vegetation. 
ANIMALS. 
The quantity of wild animals which infest these territories 
is almost innumerable, particularly in the neighbourhood of 
the settlement of Teposapa, according to Senor Iglesias. 
The tapirs, the deer, the rabbits, &c., are still more abundant; 
but surpassing all in number, is the tribe of monkeys, that 
delight in a plentiful harvest from the constant profusion of 
fruit by which they are surrounded. Many of these belong 
to the classes before named when speaking of the southern 
division of the Isthmus, while others are peculiar to the woods 
of the Coatzacoalcos, among which are some nocturnal spe¬ 
cies, and the stentor ursinus that frequently breaks the silence 
of the forest with his shrill and powerful cries, so loud indeed, 
that, judging only by its power, any one not seeing the insig¬ 
nificant little animal from which it emanates, would suppose 
it to be of considerable size. 
Following the course of the Coatzacoalcos, its banks abound 
with the so-called pheasants, the wild turkeys, the pigeons, 
partridges, ducks, and many other fowl, the flesh of which 
furnishes wholesome and delicious food. 
The multitude of parrots which inhabit this country is 
really astonishing. There are also a great number of toucans, 
especially as the inhabitants of the Isthmus include among 
these, without any distinction, the ramphastos and the ptero- 
glossus. As regards other kinds of birds, their variety almost 
baffles calculation; some of them being remarkable for the 
beauty of their plumage, and others for the melody of their 
song. 
The waters of this district abound in excellent fish. In 
the lower part of the Coatzacoalcos the manatus, called, from 
its size, the sea-cow, is frequently found. A peculiar kind 
of fresh-water tortoise deposit on the banks of these rivers 
great quantities of eggs quite different from those of the sea 
