)* 97 e , 9 2 IT =
yaner pes cyaneus cyaneus (Linn.)
This graceful creeper fulfills all the ideals of one’s
thoughts of tropical birds. We know it chiefly as an inhabi-
tant of the tree-tops and seen against the bright sky it showed
only as a slender, thin-billed, little black bird. But when
we saw it against foliage, its plumage blazed out in all its
brilliance. With a body scarcely four inches long it glowed
a brilliant purple blue, with feet of scarlet, crown of pale
blue, back and wings of blackest jet, the latter splashed with-
in by pigment of brightest gold.
We watched them in the jungle—the brillant cock birds
and the dull-striped hens of olive green. In early July, they
came in numbers with the hummingbird hosts to the honey-
laden blossoms of the cashew trees. But their life other-
wise remained a mystery until we found a nest on the seven-
teenth day of July. And both nest and eggs sustained the
admiration which we felt for the adult blue honey-creepers.
The nest was a fairy network suspended over the water,
as thin and evanescent as the shadow of an oriole’s purse, and
the eggs were the strangest of all eggs in the world—they
were black. The home of the honey-creepers was delicately
caught in the base of a great heart-leaf of a water arum, the
mucka-mucka, beloved of hoatzins, and it swung in every
breath of air barely four feet above the surface of the river’s
edge. It was exceedingly thin-walled, every detail of the
eggs and the setting bird being plainly visible. And yet it
was most durable and quite impossible to tear or even appre-
ciably alter in shape, for it was composed of fine, but very
strong thread-like rootlets, all of a uniform dark brown or
black color. The small round opening was at the top, ob-
liquely facing one side. ‘The nest itself was 17 cm. high,
and 8 em. across, while the nest hollow within measured 4 em.
in diameter by 7 cm. deep.
There were two eggs, astonishingly black or purple-
242 TROPICAL WILD LIFE IN BRITISH, GUIANA
Photo by P. G. H.
FIG. 75. NEST OF BLUE HONEY-CREEPER
black. Closer examination showed faint traces of the pale
lavender ground color, distinctly revealed at the small end,
and in irregular streaks and minute interstices as far as the
middle of the shell. They measured 20.5 x 14 and 20 x 14
mm., and were quite fresh.
ORNITHOLOGICAL DISCOVERIES 243
This is the sum of our knowledge of the blue honey-
creeper, whose appearance is such a delight to the eye, and
whose habits but whet the desire to know more of the inti-
macies of life of such strange, graceful little beings.
MORICHE ORIOLE
Icterus chrysocephalus (1inn.)
One of the first birds to greet us at Kalacoon was the
moriche oriole. ‘These birds were unusual in their charm,
for they were satisfying both to the eye and ear. From
dawn until the passing of the swift tropical twilight their
black forms, crowned and shouldered and booted with gold,
looped palm with palm, or glanced in the sunlight as they
sped away to the denser secondgrowth in search of insect
food. And hardly ever did they perch without giving utter-
ance to the silvery thread of warbling notes which, while indi-
vidual and distinctive, yet with no less certainty declared
their oriole relationship.
Late in February, upon our arrival at Kalacoon, we
discovered no less than five nests of this oriole in the single
royal palm in the compound in front of the house. We soon
found that only one pair of orioles occupied the tree, and
each day it became more and more probable that this pair
was the architect of all five nests.
Two of the nests were complete and apparently several
months old. ‘Three were unfinished and upon two of these
we saw the birds working intermittently. One of these nests
contained two eggs, one of which we took as it had apparent-
ly never been described.
The nests were placed on the under side between the
leaflets of one side of the frond, about two feet from the tip.
They were made entirely of shreds of the leaves themselves,
which. the birds tore from a particular frond, a frond which
through their industry had become almost denuded. ‘The
green fibre was woven with the bill and the process was not
H.
G.
a
=
—
S
oS
iS
—
Ry
NEST OF MORICHE ORIOLE
76.
FIG,
ORNITHOLOGICAL DISCOVERIES 245
a simple one. ‘The nest was a fairly deep cup, held in place
by the rim and sides being woven into several separate leaf-
lets. The leaves were split with the bill, and the shreds of
fibre then woven in and out until the leaf was safely bound
to the side of the nest. In the case of two of the nests the
sewing was very finely done, not unlike the work of the tailor
bird of India. The divided row of leaflets formed a per-
fectly water-proof cover. The entrance to the nest was in-
variably at the end toward the trunk of the palm. Here a
pair of leaflets was held slightly apart by a thick mass of
woven fibres, a thick frame, which also acted as a sort of
perch or landing stage for the old birds in entering or leaving
the nest. ‘The nests were of coarse materials outside, but
lined with very fine, soft shreds.
The nest with the two eggs when completed, measured,
outside, 12 cm. in length, 8.2 cm. in diameter and 6.5 in
depth. Inside it was 8.5 cm. in length, 5.7 cm. in diameter
and 5 em. in depth.
The egg was rather sharply pomted and measured 25
x 18mm. Its ground color was creamy white, marked with
spots and small blotches of various shades of dark brown,
umber and sepia. ‘These were very sparse about the small
end and the center, but abundant at the large end, the blotch-
es forming a rough wreath about it. At this end, too, there
was a hint, in the faintest markings, of the scrawl-like figures
so characteristic of the eggs of many orioles.
On March 23, the birds began building still another
nest, and laid in it before it was quite completed. On April
28, a young moriche hatched, and for the next two weeks
both parents kept busy feeding the young bird with insects.
Most of these they secured at the blossoming cashew tree.
While the birds were incubating they were rather silent,
singing but seldom, and quite wary, slipping away quietly
whenever we appeared. During the weeks of feeding, how-
ever, the constant labor was lightened with frequent singing,
246 TROPICAL WILD LIFE IN BRITISH GUIANA
and both birds became exceedingly tame, quite regardless
of our near presence.
On May 15, the young moriche left the nest and with
the two parents disappeared. No sign of them was seen
until a month had passed, when on June 14, all three re-
turned. Within a day or two the old birds began overhaul-
ing one of the half-finished nests and soon occupied it.
eee
eee
AGE
irmsé
Painted by Persis K
YOUNG GREY-BACKED TRUMPETERS
FIG. 77.
CHAPTER XIV
YOUNG GREY-BACKED TRUMPETERS
The grey-backed trumpeter (Psophia crepitans), was
fairly common in the jungle about Kalacoon. About every
second trip through the woods these birds would either be
seen or heard.
I have scanned ornithological literature and have gath-
ered together all our scanty knowledge concerning these
interesting birds, and this year I had hoped to solve the mys-
tery of their nests and eggs and young. But in this I was
only partially successful—the nests and eggs must remain
unknown until another season, and my monograph of these
birds will consequently be delayed until then.
From Cozier, a reliable boviander bird collector, I got
the following data, the accuracy of which time alone will
prove. ‘Trumpeters, or warracabras, as they are known
throughout Guiana, lay two white eggs. ‘They nest in small
colonies, one nest in each adjoining tree, five or six nests in
each group. The female takes the young by the wings or back
and carries them down to the ground. Cozier said he had
seen this accomplished. ‘The nesting season lasts until June,
eggs being found as late as that month. ‘The nest is twelve
to fifteen feet up, well built of twigs and leaves, deeply hol-
lowed so that the bird sits in it. Both parents share the du-
ties of incubation, and they will desert neither eggs nor
young even after being disturbed many times.
So much for second hand knowledge. The facts I accu-
mulated at first hand had to do only with the adults and
young: birds.
Whenever the old birds were alarmed, they would run
a short distance and then take refuge on low branches,
mounting thence by easy stages until they were quite near
248 TROPICAL WILD LIFE IN BRITISH GUIANA
Photo by P. G. Hl.
FIG. 78. YOUNG TRUMPETERS FOUR DAYS OLD
the tree-tops. ‘There they would sit and cackle to one an-
other. If suddenly flushed and terrified they flew at once,
slanting slowly downward as their power of flight weakened,
and then ran rapidly until a good distance away. If ap-
proached quietly they could be shot on their perches, and
one shot seldom alarmed the rest.
Our Indian hunter, in four months’ desultory shooting,
brought in twenty trumpeters from a comparatively restrict-
ed area. And yet at the end of our stay, there seemed no
diminution in the number of families or flocks which we ob-
served from day to day.
The sexes of these trumpeters showed a preponderance
of females of about two to one. The food of these birds was
chiefly vegetable and exceedingly varied. For instance, the
crop of one bird contained a thorax of a large, green beetle,
YOUNG TRUMPETERS 249
and fragments of several small beetles and orange ants, be-
sides numerous red seeds, skins of berries and several chest-
nut-shaped, hard, greenish seeds. This was typical of many
birds examined, the proportion of vegetable to animal mat-
ter being about eighty to twenty per cent.
We secured three young birds in the downy stage. One
of these was about a week old, and was one of four of equal
age, which were in company with three old birds, a male and
two females.
On April 21, we secured two very young trumpeters
about four days old (Fig. 78). These were associated
with a flock of ten or twelve adults and eight or ten nestling
birds, cheeping on the ground in all directions.
The downy trumpeter had the characteristic shake of
the head and nervous wing-flapping of the adults. Its note
was a sharp peep like that of a chick, until called or stroked
when it changed to a plaintive, sibilant twe, twe, twe, twe, or
when more excited, chwwee! chuwee! This reminded one of
the whistling squeak emitted by a rubber doll.
The chicks roosted at night on the highest perch, and
during the day preferred always the darkness of the coop
to the bright light outside where the young curassows and
guans spent their time.
When first placed with these other young birds, the
downy trumpeter became quite excited, flicked its wings and
bowed, quite like the old birds of its own species. It could
not as yet boom, but when greatly agitated, as when caught
in the hand, it uttered the prolonged cackle of the adults,
together with the high, shrill note.
It variably perched on one foot, and this rested chiefly
on the middle toe, with the big basal pad behind the perch,
the central toe curled around it, and the other two spread
laterally along the top. The hind toe was quite useless in
roosting, being raised high above the perch.
The pattern of the young trumpeter was very complex
and wholly unlike that of any other downy chick with which
250 TROPICAL WILD LIFE IN BRITISH GUIANA
FIG. 79. YOUNG TRUMPETER TWO MONTHS OLD
I am familiar. (Fig. 77).. In a week-old chick the lores,
sides of the crown, face, chin and throat were dark seal
brown. The eartuft and two sprouting zones of breast feath-
ers, jet black. Entire sides of neck and foreneck dark smoky
brown. Belly, abdomen and inner thighs buffy white.
YOUNG TRUMPETERS 251
A broad line down the center of the crown, splitting
apart on the hind crown and nape, and coalescing again on
the hind neck, was pale cinnamon. A complex series of cres-
cents on the upper and mid-back, two latero-dorsal lines ex-
tending quite to the tail, and an elaborate pattern on the
sides of the body and the outer thighs were cinnamon, the
thigh markings paler, more buffy.
The background of the lower neck and upper back was
black. The background of all the remainder of the plumage
—two lateral crown lines as far back as the lower neck, the
mid and lower back, rump, sides and outer thighs—all were
cold, grizzled grey, varying from cinereous to plumbeous.
The wing feathers, which were sprouting strongly, were
almost concealed by the long, fluffy cmnamon down. This
down was very evenly distributed on the sprouting barbs,
each stem of down usually resting firmly on an individual
barb. ‘Ten primaries were sprouting, slightly longer than
the secondaries. All ten were black. ‘The 6th was the long-
est, measuring 61.5 mm. Sixteen secondary flights had
sprouted, the outer five unusually strong and black i in color.
The 6th was slightly tinged with grey, while the succeeding
ten were wholly grey anal inmates! rapidly in size, from
43.5 to 11 mm.
The iris was hazel brown. ‘The bill black with restricted
areas of ivory white along the culmen, lower edge of upper
and tip of lower mandible. Inside of mouth, pale flesh, ex-
cept for posterior palate which was black. Legs and feet
chaetura drab, paler on larger scales, darker on soles.
When the chick was two months old the down still per-
sisted on the head, neck and posterior dorsal areas.
As typical of an adult in full molt, I present the details
of wings and tail of a bird shot on July 20.
The three outer primaries were old.
4th nearly full-grown.
5th a quarter grown sheath.
All the remaining primaries new.
252 TROPICAL WILD LIFE IN BRITISH GUIANA
Secondaries all new, full-grown, except from the 8th
mward which were still growing.
RECTRICES
Left 5 4 3 2] 1
1 2 3 4 5 Right
Old New New New New
New New Old New Old
full- sheath full- 1-3 1-3 full- full-
grown grown grown grown grown grown
4
Formula of tail molt: aes | er
COMPARATIVE MEASUREMENTS
Middle
Weight Length Bill Wing Tail Tarsus Toe and Claw
5) day chick= === 78 grams 176 14 29 -- 32.5 32.5
60 day chick........ 1 Ib. 266 22 107 15 52 46
AGU Eee eee 2 lbs. 540 40 270 115 129 95
CHAPTER XV
THE WAYS OF TINAMOU
Some day an entire volume will be written about these
birds and every word of it will be fascinating reading. For
they are surcharged with exciting and unexpected habits and
ways of life. ‘Their appearance and voice, roosting, flight,
nesting and courtship—all are unexpected, often inexplic-
able, always thoroughly absorbing. 'They have somewhat
the appearance of bob-tailed partridges and in the tropical
jungles almost usurp the place of the quail, partridges and
grouse of our northern forests. For these latter birds are
of true northern origin and the scattering of forms which
have made their way thus far to the south are only hardy
pioneers, of small size and laying but few eggs, barely hold-
ing their own among the intensive dangers of this region.
The tinamou are the dominant ground birds of the
Guiana jungles. They are so specialized for a terrestrial
life that they have unshipped their feathery rudder—their
tail-feathers have softened, shortened and merged with the
rest of the body plumage. Their flight is thus direct, and
is seldom sustained over fifty yards.
By squatting at the sign of danger they unconsciously
offer conclusive proof of the concealing character of their
garb of browns and greys. At a nearer approach they boom
up into the dim air of the mid-jungle, hurling themselves
off through the trees with an astounding roar of wings, and
then scaling on a long, slowly descending slant, to the
ground far beyond view.
In physical make-up they are dual or triple personali-
ties, for they are fowls or pheasant-like from some angles
and quite ostrich-like from others. ‘To scientists, tinamou
are as yet the most casual of acquaintances. We know only
254 TROPICAL. WILD LIFEIN BRITISH GUIANA
Photo by W. B.
FIG. 80. ROUNDED WING AND DEGENERATE TAIL OF TINAMOU
the most superficial facts concerning them and their lives
from birth to death.
I shall point this chapter with one of these facts, one
concerning a mere physical character, small in itself, but
which I shall try to make significant. ‘or I shall consider
it as typifying the future work which I wish to carry on at
the Research Station, the sort of work which can only be
done in the field, and yet which is initiated and controlled by
the knowledge derived from books and museums. And I
shall take it up in detail as an illustration of one of the many
WAYS OF TINAMOU 255
methods of research, in part deliberately planned a priori,
in part seeming like luck. |
There are eight species of tinamou in British Guiana,
three of which are found in the vicinity of Bartica. ‘These
are divided into two genera, Tinamus and Crypturus. Ety-
mologically, there is neither logic nor reason in these names as
terms of differentiation; both groups are tinamou and both
deserve the name of “hidden-tail.”” These genera are recog-
nized throughout the world, and whenever any specimens of
these particular birds are received in museums they are at
once classified as one or the other. The actual character of
differentiation is the scaly part of the leg or tarsus. In Tina-
mus, the rear part of the leg is exceedingly rough, the edges
of the scales projecting and forming a series of rugged cor-
rugations. In Crypturus, the hinder aspect of the tarsus is
quite smooth. These two distinctions have been recognized
for many years—T%namus for more than one hundred and
thirty, and Crypturus for a hundred and six years, and dur-
ing all this time ornithologists have accepted this character
without thought or question. The needs of taxonomy having
been satisfied, there was no danger of confusion even if a
pile of skins of the two groups were thoroughly mixed up.
So the birds have been labelled and catalogued and put away
in their respective cases and the incident—the casual, nom-
inal affair between Hermann and Illiger versus Tinamus
and Cry pturus—was considered closed.
But this is unworthy of the very name of science and or-
nithology. It is as if we should meet a person with an infi-
nite capacity for life-long friendship and should wilfully
turn away after merely hearing his name.
Soon after the first tinamou sprang up from under my
feet in the jungle, or when Nupee, the Indian hunter,
brought me the first of the many whose flesh were to form
so excellent a part of our food, the old, old question forced
itself upon me, the question from which I can never hope
nor desire, to escape; the question which makes all science
256 TROPICAL WILD EIEESIN BRITISH, GUIANA
Photo by W. B.
FIG. 81. ROUGH TARSUS OF TINAMUS
worth while; the question, Why? ‘The names Tinamus and
Crypturus, became naught but names. A|l significance fell
from them, and running my fingers over the rough tarsus
of one bird and the smooth, shining scales of another, I asked
again and again, “Why?”
I noticed that in every instance the rough-backed tarsus
was coated with dirt. Often the interstices were completely
choked with fine mud and debris or with fibrous mold. ‘The
legs of the smaller birds were as clean as they were smooth.
With only a half-framed theory in mind I thoroughly washed
off the dirt from the tarsi of several birds and sprinkled it
on a pot of earth, which previously I had thoroughly baked.
In the course of the following weeks I reared an interesting
little assortment of mosses and small arboreal plants, but
which, after all, formed only circumstantial evidence.
Nupee, the Akawai hunter, was an excellent observer
and, as I had:tested on a number of occasions, a truthful
reporter of what he observed. But to make more certain
of the result, I put my questions indirectly and negatively,
so that to tell the truth he would have to go against my
apparent assumption. All but strictly honest natives and
savages will readily fall into this little snare, and will offer
WAYS OF TINAMOU 257
Photo by P. G. H.
FIG. 82. SMOOTH TARSUS OF CRYPTURUS
sacrifice to the favor of ‘““Marster” or “Sahib” or “Tuan,”
rather than to the most elusive goddess of all hierarchy.
To Nupee, Tinamus, or the great tinamou, was known
as maru; the two Crypturus, the pileated and variegated
tinamou, were respectively orri-orri and sulima.
Our conversation was brief and to the point, running
somewhat as follows:
‘“Nupee, you know orri-orri?”
“Ves, marster.”’
“He sleep in tree?”
“No, orri-orri sleep on ground.”
“Does sulima sleep in tree?”
“No, sulima sleep on ground.”
“You know maru?”
sevaes a:
“Then maru sleep on ground, too?”
“No, maru sleep in tree.”
Then, in the course of the next few days:
‘“Nupee, you say maru and sulima sleep on ground?”
‘No, maru always sleep in tree, ever’ night.”
This was pretty good for exhibit B of proof. But such
a habit was so startling, so unlike what we should expect of
birds extremely specialized for terrestrial life, that I could
not be wholly convinced.
258 TROPICAL WILD LIFE, IN BRITISH GUIANA
Late one afternoon I was some distance from Kalacoon
when a sudden downpour of rain came on. I had many snug
retreats and shelters scattered through the jungle of which
I made use whenever I was caught with a camera in one
of the occasional afternoon showers. I ran at once to a huge
hollow tree, whose splayed buttresses arched far outward,
and whose great hollow trunk vibrated alternately day and
night with the humming wings of swifts and the softer swish
of bats. During the course of the rain I found many things
to watch, for the life of the jungle is often most interesting
at unusual moments. ‘The incident which dwarfed all others, -
however, was a great tinamou, a T%namus, a maru, which
stepped past with quick, dainty strides and half leaped, half
fluttered awkwardly up to the base of a leaning tree, and with
wildly balancing wings, made its way forty or fifty feet still
higher to a large horizontal branch. Here without hesita-
tion, backed close against the trunk, the bird squatted, and
facing lengthways of the branch, rested on its tarsi, which
were applied closely to the rough, mossy bark.
The third and conclusive phase of the quest of the
“Why?” had come. Now, indeed, we could return to Tina-
mus and to Crypturus, and resurrect them from the tomb of
meaningless terms, of hollow names, of inarticulate raison d
étre. Our answer to the “Why?” has made them significant,
surcharged with a reality of difference, and has aroused a
desire to carry the interrogation farther, striving to ‘learn
the reason for the tree roost.
GUIANA GREAT TINAMOU
Tinamus major (Gmelin)
This big, olive greenish tinamou was the most abundant
of the three Bartica species, and it was seldom that one took
a walk in the jungle without observing or flushing several
birds. ‘They were equally common on both banks of the
Mazaruni and up the Cuyuni. The early morning and late
WAYS OF TINAMOU 259
afternoon were the periods of their greatest activity and the
times when their calls were more frequently heard. On
cloudy days, however, they would call at any hour, and on
moonlight nights, throughout the night. They were essen-
tially birds af the Sunes and never ‘left the deep woods to
come into the secondgrowth. Like all tinamou they were
solitary birds, and I never saw even a pair together, although
occasionally several would be temporarily drawn together
by the abundance of fallen fruit beneath some great jungle
tree.
When feeding, they would squat at the first hint of
danger, but at the second alarm, if the source of danger ap-
proached gradually, they would bend low and attempt to
sneak quietly away. ‘This was the usual view one got of
these birds if he was picking his way quietly Shree the
jungle. To watch them, one must crouch at the very first
hint of their presence and have patience to wait for a half-
hour to quiet their suspicions. When on the nest they did
not leave until discovery seemed inevitable, when they burst
up with a disconcerting whirr of wings, almost a booming,
which, coming unexpectedly made accurate observation very
difficult.
I have never heard a cry of alarm or danger, nor any
call to chicks nor content note, neither have I seen them in
the act of uttering their trill. This call, which was a sum-
mons to the mate or mates—for this species 1s polvandrous—
was a true trill, steady and rolling, sustained on the same
note with the following intervals:
In February or early March the courtship was at its
height, judging from the loudness and persistency of the
long, drawn-out calls. About the second or third week in
March the breeding season began, and in mid-April, it was
in full swing.
The nest was invariably placed at the base of a tree,
vo
ar
Photo by P. G. H.
OF GUIANA GREAT TINAMOU
a)
4
NESTING SITE
Qs
Oo
FIG,
WAYS OF TINAMOU 261
between two small projecting buttresses. The trees selected
were small and the nests were usually on the side away from
the prevailing heavy rains. One such nest found on the third
of April was close to the base of a young mora tree in light
undergrowth. ‘The six eggs, burnished, spheroidal, were
lying in a deep depression of the thick layer of dead leaves
which covered the whole of this part of the jungle floor.
Several large leaves hung directly over the nest, sheltering
it from view above. We found it by accident, while we were
searching for the nest of a big black-breasted ant-thrush,
which persisted in wandering aimlessly about, once or twice
fairly walking over the tinamou’s nest. This was one of the
most beautiful and graceful of the ant-thrushes, large and
partridge-like, leer pattering with dainty steps over the
leaves and dodging under hanging vines. Now and then
she uttered a shel querulous rohatter and between times
dipped her tail sandpiper-like. ‘The male flew almost at my
first movement and did not return. ‘The female walked
about, keeping apparently away from her own nest and ulti-
mately blundered into and flushed the tinamou.
As we leaned over the nest, held by the beauty of the
great, blue spheres, we came under the suspicion of a world of
midgets. First came a pair of cinnamon hummingbirds
whose nest must have been close by, for they bullied every-
thing in sight. Insect-like, they came within arm’s-length
of my Sees, where they whirred, and hung suspended, and
flicked back and forth. Then they had a mimic battle with
one another, chirping loudly, and this outer y brought a pair
of diminutive flycatchers to the scene, and two equally tiny
ant-thrushes. Like most small birds, all were absurdly tame
and all vented their wrath upon us as we photographed the
tinamou nest. A few minutes afterward, several yards
away, I surprised a beautiful ocelot lying on a log. This
was down a deep gully close to tumbling rapids. The cat
hesitated long enough to mouth a silent snarl, then noise-
lessly sprang back into the jungle. Last of all, as we left
NOWVNIL LVAD VNVINS HAO SOO GNV LSAUN ‘8 “Old
“HD 'd fq 000Ud
WAYS OF TINAMOU 268
the glade with our colorful treasures, an equally brilliant,
blue morpho butterfly flapped slowly past. Such were some
of the surroundings of this tnamou nest of early April.
There seems to be much variation in the number of eggs
of this species. Eight is not uncommon, but the sets of ten
and twelve which have been reported are very unusual. I
found several instances where sets of four and six were being
incubated. The shells were spheroidal, highly burnished, as
in all timamou, and light turquoise blue in color. The aver-
age measurement was 57 x 47 mm.
The eye of this tinamou was dark hazel, and its facial
skin leaden blue. The legs and feet were a peculiar green-
blue grey or in voung birds a clear celandine green; the bill
was a dark bluish horn, with the lower mandible lighter. An
average bird showed the following measurements: bill, 34
mm.; wing, 247; tail, 87; middle toe and claw, 41 mm.
The females averaged slightly larger than the males,
the extremes being 420 and 477 mm. The sexes were equal
in weight, from 1.5 to 2.75 lbs. The food was wholly vege-
table, consisting chiefly of seeds swallowed whole, pink,
green, brown or yellow, resembling acorns or nuts of various
shapes. ‘The favorite food was the seed of the monkey-pots
(Lecythis).
When the skin was removed, the flesh was of a strange
greenish-grey color, most unhealthy in appearance, but deli-
cate and delicious when cooked.
There seemed to be but slight difference between the
sexes. ‘The males were, as a rule, more rufous and less olive
than the females. In full-plumaged males the forehead and
crown were blue-black with the chestnut nape and hind
crown sharply set off. In a large series of females the black-
ened area extended over the whole crown and forehead.
Even the birds in most perfect plumage, showed signs
of the serious effect of the béte rouge. The nape and back of
the neck of almost every bird, like the cheeks of the agoutis,
were bare and mangy, and dotted with scarlet clumps of
264 TROPICAL WILD LIFE IN BRITISH GUIANA
Photo by W. B.
FIG. 8. HEAD OF GUIANA GREAT TINAMOU SHOWING
PATCHES OF BETE ROUGE
these pests. These were larvae of some species of T'rombi-
dium, probably one of the large members of the subgenus
Dinothrombium.
There were very few mallophaga on the body or wings,
but among the chin feathers [ found many specimens. ‘These
were of two species. One was small and narrow, Lipeurus
longipes, which has been recorded from several other species
of these birds, although nothing is known of its relationships.
The second mallophaga, which was of large size, broad in
proportion, and quite hairy was Goniodes albiceps. » This
has been found on Tinamus robustus and T. tao. The genus
as a whole has been recorded from gallinaceous birds and
from penguins.
A bird of the year had a feather-fly upon its plumage.
This strange, flat insect flew off several times, but after each
excursion returned to the feathers of the dead bird. Failing
to catch it, I wrapped the whole bird in a butterfly net, placed
it in a chloroform box, and finally shook the dead fly from
the plumage.
The molt of the tail seemed almost as irregular, as the
structure of the feathers is degenerate. ‘The most usual
shedding of the five pairs of rectrices was as follows: 5, 4, 2,
3,1. ‘The molt of the primaries was normal, from the inner
WAYS OF TINAMOU 265
toward the outside pairs, but the fifth secondary was always
the first to be dropped.
PILEATED TINAMOU
Crypturus sout sour (Hermann)
The voice of this bird was one of the commonest noc-
turnal sounds which we heard from Kalacoon house. It was
but rarely heard even at the edge of the Jungle, never from
its heart, but was confined wholly to the secondgrowth and
the still more open clearing of the rubber plantation. At one
time or another it could be heard during every one of the
four and twenty hours; seldom, however, chon ing the day, and
only during cloudy weather. From eight to nine in the late
evening, at midnight, and again from ane to six in the early
morning were three very pronounced vocal periods.
The trilling differed from that of the great tinamou in
being of Sacer phrasing, and less high nue sweet. Usually
only a single phrase was uttered, this being repeated after
a few seconds, or after another bird answered. But occa-
sionally, especially during the midnight period, the birds
gave voice to what was the acme of their vocal efforts. ‘The
sweet trills rose higher and higher in shortened, excited
cadences, until they ended abruptly on the highest note of
what was really a secondary trill.
This may be visualized thus: -
Photo by P. G. H.
FIG. 86. EGG OF PILEATED TINAMOU
WAYS OF TINAMOU 267
The usual trill was of this linear cadence:
oe
The latter was the call which aroused the excited as-
cending trill, so it was probably peculiar to one or the other
Sex.
It is not femarkable that we are ignorant of which ut-
terance characterizes the males, for the breeding habits of
these birds are so strange that no transference or assumption
of qualities would be surprising in their sex.
While with most birds the breeding season is confined
to a fairly well marked season, with the pileated tinamou,
the nesting period seemed interminable. From the begin-
ning to the end of our stay the birds never ceased to call,
and they apparently nested assiduously throughout the en-
tire six months. Unlike the great tinamou which deposits a
number of eggs, broods them, cares for the chicks and has
done, the pileated deposits but one egg. At the vocal solici-
tation of the male, the female approaches; she deigns to lay
her single egg, and then departs, whether to perform the
same rite for another male, we do not know. The male takes
charge, and it was at this period that I found him on the
fifth of May, incubating, in solitude, his single clay-colored
egg. ‘There was no nest, the egg being laid on the dead leaf
debris in a recently weeded field of rubber. It was quite
fresh, measured 40 x 31 mm., and weighed 21 grams. ‘Two
egos have been found in a closely related species in Costa
Rica, but hereabouts only a single one was deposited. The
handicap of number was compensated by continuity of
brood, and barely did one young pileated reach the age of
discretion, when another female was summoned and another
ege began to fulfill its destiny. One can only wonder; one
cannot even theorize as to the why and wherefore of such
268 TROPICAL WILD LIFE IN BRITISH GUIANA
strange habits, apparently so wasteful of valuable energy.
Pileated tinamou were to us an almost disembodied, al-
though omnipresent voice. Living as they did in the im-
penetrable secondgrowth, laced and bound up with the warp
and woof of razor-grass, we scarcely ever caught even a
glimpse of them, and the specimens we desired had to be
secured with quick snap shots, whose success was rather luck
than accurate shooting.
They were much smaller than the big tinamou, and a
breeding male weighed only half a pound, and measured
235 mm. in length. The female was of the same weight,
but averaged larger, about 268 mm. 'T he two favorite items
of diet were a nondescript, greenish seed, and another flat,
round and woody, with yellow flesh. The females showed
more of a rich chestnut color than their mates, whose feath-
ers—poor wretches--were usually worn from constant
setting.
VARIEGATED TINAMOU
Crypturus variegatus (Gmelin)
The third member of this strange, terrestrial fraternity
lived altogether in the jungle, where it was almost as abun-
dant as the Great Tinamou. Its small size enabled it more
often to escape observation. Its voice was less often heard,
and it was the sweetest of all the tinamou. ‘The first drawn-
out phrase was higher than the steady rolling of the large
bird, and this was followed by six or eight short, separate
trills, an ascending staccato, which ended suddenly on the
highest note.
WAYSsOE TDINAMOU 269
Like the pileated, this tinamou deposited but a single
egg, and we found males, attended by one three-quarters
grown chick, beginning to incubate a new egg. Such devo-
tion would be hard to equal. ‘The egg was discovered on
June 17, and it contained an embryo of about four days.
In a breeding female the iris was amber; the mandibles
black, the lower yellowish-white toward the base; the legs
and feet warbler-green. ‘The length varied from 285 to
325 mm., and the birds weighed Boer three-quarters of a
pound. ‘The food was domimantly seeds and nuts of various
kinds, some like acorns, others resembling cherries in color
and pits. ‘wo birds only had eaten insects, small beetles
and wire worms.
Judged by the day-to-day shooting for the pot by the
Indian hunter, the average proportion of the sexes was eight
males to each female, and without exception, the latter were
in much finer plumage. Curiously enough, however, all the
chicks and half-grown birds were females.
The difference between the true juvenile and the adult
plumage 1 is abrupt and striking. In the first plumage, the
head is chestnut rather than black, and the feathers of the
upper parts instead of being black, cross-barred with buff,
are rufous, with black centers and white tips. Beneath, the
reverse is true and in place of the plain rufous and white of
the old bird, we find warm buffy feathers barred with black
and white.
A few weeks later another molt takes place. ‘The head
becomes black as in the adult, but the body plumage is inter-
mediate between the juvenile and the adult. This molt does
not include the wing feathers which change abruptly from
juvenile to adult pattern. In this wing role the primaries
are replaced regularly from within cule. The seventh
and eighth secondaries fall almost simultaneously, and from
these the molt proceeds both outward and inward. Both
juvenile and adult primaries are dark colored, but the sec-
ondaries show very marked changes in the two plumages.
270 TROPICAL WILD LIFE IN BRITISH (GUIANA
Photo by P. G. H.
FIG. 87. EGG OF VARIEGATED TINAMOU
The juvenile secondaries have the exposed parts of the vane
of a rich chestnut color, while in the adult these feathers are
black with more or less regular barring of yellowish-buff.
A chick of about two weeks of age had ten half-grown,
juvenile rectrices, the outer pairs nearly grown, me inner
mere sheaths; the molt being thus centripetal.
A comparison of measurements shows the relative
growth.
Middle toe
Length Bill Wing Tail Tarsus andclaw Weight
2 weeks chick...............160 17 105 28 30 20 Y |b.
AG tye cae eee 298 oH | 155 48 4.0 28 34 |b.
CELAP LE RAS I
WILD LIFE NEAR KALACOON
I
The laboratory room at Kalacoon possessed sixteen
windows and, standing as it did, on an isolated eminence, two
hundred feet above the Mazaruni river, and the intervening
Jungle, it is no exaggeration to say that a zoologist could
spend many weeks in worthwhile observation without de-
scending to the ground outside, and years of study would
be well Teed in “the compound itself.
I attempt in this chapter only the presentation of des-
ultory notes, but they each possess some raison d’étre and
as a whole, suggest the wide field for research offered by
even this fied area.
I arose usually before daybreak and divided many of
the early morning hours between writing and watching from
the windows the “pavial awakening of the day’s life.
Perhaps he: most noticeable ashi was meteorologic—
the calms of early morning. ‘They were unvarying. No
matter how tempestuous the evening before or the night,
the dark just before sunrise and the hours of early morning
were always calm and quiet. Not a breath of air stirred.
The tide flowed silently up or down, or for a short time held
itself motionless. Rarely, at the high tide, the river surface
was broken by porpoises, or manatees or a leaping lukananni.
While the calm was unvarying, the atmosphere might be
clear to the horizon, so that the distant range of the Blue, and
the Pull-and-be-damned Mountains were sharply defined,
or on the other hand, the air might be so drenched in mist
that the nearest shrubs were quite invisible.
Sound seemed to carry farther at these times of quiet.
If it were dark the trill of the pileated tinamou, the loud cry
272 TROPICAL WILD LIFE IN BRITISH GUIANA
+;
: Photo by W. B.
FIG. 88. THE OPEN CLEARING OF KALACOON COMPOUND
of the who-are-you or the indescribably mournful wail of the
poor-me-one, echoed from the darkness at the edge of the
compound. Or later, in the half-light, these were replaced
by the harsh squawks of caracaras, the shrill scream of par-
rots or macaws, an early risen kiskadee, or the never-absent
duets of the httle guans or hanaquas.
it
Many mornings I made notes on the awakening of
tropical life, as I observed it through the senses of sight
and hearing, beginning at daybreak, at 5:30 A. M., and con-
tinuing it for a half or a full hour. I print three of these
tables of observation, made respectively in March, May and
July.
5
OU or OF OF OV OT OT TU TH
Or Or Sr Or Or
KALACOON WILD LIFE 273
Marcu 26, 1916:
:30—Just light enough to write; baboons howling across river; martins
efienae sleepily.
:35—Hanaquas start S. E.
:38—Second hanaquas start S. Twa-twa slave sings constantly.
:39—Third hanaquas start E. Jungle pigeon coos.
:40—Yellow warbler sings. Several finches sing.
:41—Palm tanager flies down from thorn palm.
:42—Wren sings.
:43—Pigeon coos loudly.
:44—Moriche oriole leaves nest in thorn palm.
:-45—Fourth hanaqua N. E. (close to edge of compound). First hana-
qua answers. First martin flies.
:-46—Hanaquas calling in three directions. The poor-me-one calls. The
midnight song of the variegated tinamou.
:49—Wren’s voice still dominant, with hanaquas at intervals. Six o'clock
bee cicada starts. Flyeatchers of several species sing their
harsh songs. ‘Thrush far in the distance, very sweet.
:55—Second moriche oriole leaves nest.
:57—Twelve or fifteen martins appear in sky, coming from jungle.
Twa-twa slave mounts bush and sings violently; wheechew!
wheechee! ete.
:00—Martins increase in number and continue feeding. Beetles drone
past, and big bees appear.
:01—Three Pitangus lictor begin chasing each other. Caracara uproar
in distance.
:04—Kiskadees appear at edge of clearing and sit silently on twigs.
Martins and high- perching flycatchers busy, insects are fly-
ing high.
:06—Flock of katydids come into clearing and a dozen flycatchers and
finches chase them wildly.
:07—Blue tanager passes.
:10—Chorus has died out; birds busily feeding. Kiskadees call for first
time in distance.
First hummingbird feeding.
May 16, 1916:
Clouds in East. Faint light.
:30 to 5:45—Howlers, poor-me-one, tinamou, who-are-you, wife-sick,
all heard during this period. Bats, hawk over roof.
:-48—Wren singing.
:50—Palm tanager leaves palm. Jungle pigeon bells.
:51—Dragonflies out.
:52—Hanaquas E. and S.
:5214—Hanaquas S. E. ones answer.
UN
Or
OL OU
~
Ye
5234
:03
74 TROPICAL WIELD LIFE IN BRITISH GUIANA
eS —
Photo by W.
FIG. 89. FAWN OF SMALL GRAY DEER
Hanaquas S. E. E. ones answer.
~
:53—E. ones answer.
-
:54—New hanaqua couple S. S. E.
x
:55——White-throated kingbird goes to thorn-bush perch and catches first
insect. First martin leaves nest.
:56—Six more martins.
:57—Six pairs hanaquas calling.
:58—Kiskadees and streaked flycatcher hawking. Indoor martins leave.
:59—Every high bush has its flycatcher now, dozens all over cecropia
forests, flying up and feeding. First butterfly out.
:00—-Pigeons belling in three directions; courting. Seedeaters still
asleep. Moriche orioles leave palm nest. Harsh cries of
flyeatchers dominant for the last ten minutes. Sun rises in
clouds.
Amazon parrots leave roost.
:04—Tinamou in distance; then one close to compound. First small
flocks of swifts from jungle toward river.
:06—Twenty swifts hawking very high in the air.
:07—Grass-finches appear and sing.
:08—Heavy mist blowing from forest, clouds whole sky.
KALACOON WILD LIFE 275
6:09—F inch songs now dominant. Woodhewer heard in distance.
6:10—More swifts.
6:11—F inches and ground birds become dominant and have their hour.
Jury 2, 1916:
Sky clear except for few fleecy clouds, and a few mountainous island-
clouds along the bright east. One star straight overhead.
Everything drenched with dew, valleys filled with mist.
Light enough to write easily.
5:30—Wren in full song. Jungle pigeon in distance, and baboons how!l-
ing. First chatter of martins. Two species of finches
singing.
5:32—Two hanaquas S.
5 :3214—Two hanaquas N. E.
5:33—Two hanaquas S. E. (near).
5 :3314—Two hanaquas N. W. (near).
5 :35—Dragonfly hawking.
5 :351—First two martins going to river to drink. Palm tanagers leav-
ing nesting place. Moriche oriole leaves palm.
5:36—Young martins chirping in box.
5 :36'4—White-throated flycatcher makes first catch and goes to thorn
tree perch, calling.
5:37—Rooster flaps and crows twice.
5:38—Tinamou trills. Second pair of nesting martins go toward river
for drink. Eight dragonflies hawking. Hanaquas end chor-
us, each pair having called three times.
:39—Two wrens have sung almost continuously.
:-40—Woodpecker pounds in the jungle to the south.
5 :4114—Indoor-nesting-martin feeds young.
or
AE ee 25:4enima:
lige nee Ba > grin arate 240 ee 7 ats 2952, —
14° SPE nae an Oe 20:9 28Ac SEO as
Hullyeiledoedi2 "2s. 192 oe SUR a eae
Adult: S37: a ie ee 20: z 29: me a2. si
DEVELOPMENT OF WING 351
There is a directly opposite variation between the hand
and the arm, while the length of the middle segment remains
constant throughout. The lengthened hand and shortened
arm is undoubtedly a parallelism with the swifts, though it
does not attain such extremes. The ratio of the wing seg-
ments of the giant swift (Chaetura zonaris albicincta) of
the Guianas, commencing with the humerus, is 20-27-53,
while that of the martin is 24.6-35.8-40 per cent. There is a
vast difference, but the tendency is toward that of the swift.
It would be hard to imagine the albatross with its tre-
mendously long humerus or, indeed, any other bird with a
long arm, dodging and twisting through the air with the
agility of a swift in pursuit of an insect. The laws of me-
chanics make it impossible for such a bird to move its wings
with the rapidity necessary for an operation of this kind.
On the other hand, a bird with a short humerus, because the
bone has a lesser arc to describe, can do this with less expense
of energy. Therefore the swift, from a need of having to
follow its rapid and elusive insect prey on the wing, has a
short arm, and to make up for this diserepancy, a proportion-
ally lengthened hand. Their nesting habits are also condu-
cive to a shortened arm—nesting as they do, in caverns and
hollow trees or building great elongated tunnels that hang
from palm leaves and cliff walls; but the habits are probably
a result of and not a cause for the shortening.
The martin more or less parallels the swift in its general
feeding habits and nesting sites. Though it does not have
such supreme command over the air, still it makes a living
catching its food by aerial pursuit, which necessitates a
good control of the wings and great dodging ability. Thus
the arm, must have a tendency to shorten, and the hand to
lengthen.
SUMMARY
Throughout the development of all the birds above men-
tioned there seems to be a certain balance kept between the
302 TROPICAL WILD LIFE IN BRITISH GUIANA
different portions of the wing. Among the birds that are
fairly strong fliers, when one segment increases proportion-
ally in length, another decreases in the same proportion, or
both of the others diminish to such an extent that the sum of
their total loss equals the gain of the first. J*urthermore,
when there is a local change in one segment at a single period
of growth, it is usually balanced by an opposite change in
one of the other segments, or by the sum of the changes in
both of the others. Thus in the hoatzin, the toucan and the
‘acique—three widely separated birds—we find that the
balance is kept in all stages, though the proportionate lengths
may greatly differ.
The blue-winged parrakeet is an exception to the gen-
eral rule. In this bird both the arm and the hand increase
in length as the fledgling grows older, while the forearm
remains approximately the same. On the seventh day, how-
ever, the forearm shows a considerable increase over that of
the adult and the hand a much greater decrease. While this
does not bear out the second rule, it at least shows that there
is a tendency toward it.
In some birds that use their feet more than their wings,
the proportional growth of one segment remains about the
same, while the others grow in opposite directions. In the
heron it is the pinion; in the trumpeter, the arm; in the Jja-
‘ana, the forearm. ‘The growth of the other two segments
is opposite in each, the greatest variation taking place in the
hand and the arm of the jacana.
Or more concretely:
A. Throughout the development of the wing of the
hoatzin, Guiana green heron, trumpeter and jacana—birds
that use their feet more than their wings—the proportional
length of one segment remains constant, while the other two
rary in opposite directions.
B. Throughout the development of the wing in at least
one toucan and in several Passeres, a balance is kept between
the different segments so that when one portion changes,
DEVELOPMENT OF WING 353
another or both of the others change in an opposite direction:
the variation of one equals the total variation of the others.
C. ‘Throughout the development of the wing in all the
birds above discussed, when there is a change of length in one
segment at any particular period of growth, that change is
balanced in the same period by an opposite variation of one
or both of the other segments.
THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE PINION
To a great extent, the length of the pinion in many birds
is regulated by their habits. It is interesting to note the
various changes that take place in this member throughout
the period that elapses from the embryonic stages to ma-
turity. It is possible to trace in them some of the changes
that have taken place through many generations, due pos-
sibly to the changes of environment which occurred during
the later geological periods.
Commencing with the hoatzin we have the development
of the hand, outlined as follows:
Opisthocomus hoazin (Illiger)
Carpus Digitus
Raa Tey Came eso ee eM 43. mm. 23.5 mm.
bOMday cnestlime ye 0 oe! Ba, 32.3 ~
ata PAV Pee ae aire eee B4e2) Sone ta
PANO N VS: eames Ree Me CRE ates fe 39. oe AF Raa ee
In the embryo the carpus—containing the metacarpals
of the second digit—is very long, being nearly twice as great
as the digitus or forefinger. The excess of length is a relic
of past ages when birds were not so far removed from their
reptilian ancestors as they are at the present day. It is un-
doubtedly a remnant of the elongated metacarpals of the
lizard.
In the nestling the great carpus of the embryo decreases
in length and the digit increases proportionally. ‘This is at
OSES Eno8 ssiieseittasitast ct easiest feseiit
5 roo
FIG. 118. DIAGRAM OF HAND DEVELOPMENT OF THE HOATZIN
the period when the claws of the hoatzin are at their greatest
development. At maturity the conditions again change; the
‘arpus elongates and the digitus shortens, but the difference
is not so great as it was in the embryo.
Much the same condition exists in the young chick
trumpeter. The carpus, in the six-day chick, is almost twice
the digitus in leneth, but at maturity only exceeds it by a
few millimeters. ‘This increase of the digitus, however, does
not, as in the hoatzin, equal the decrease of the carpus, though
the delayed growth of one and the slight elongation of the
other is significant.
Psophia crepitans (Linn.)
Carpus Digitus
6 iday click.) 425 es 37.5. mm. 22.8 mm.
Adult. oe = ee nee Die Fe As as amet
A better maintained balance in the hand-—as far as as-
certained—is found to a more or less extent in passerine birds
and others that do not have better than an average flight.
The variation of each portion in the individual is diamet-
rically opposite. This is especially true in nestlings, while
in the embryo the variations are as a rule greater and oppo-
site. Such is the case with birds like the kiskadee, yellow-
DEVELOPMENT OF WING 355
backed cacique, giant cacique (Ostinops), silver-beaked
tanager and blue-winged parrakeet, all with good average
flights, but which have a small variation of the carpus and
digitus during their development.
Pitangus sulphuratus (Linn.)
Carpus Digitus
Zod OI gra oh eee ole Ee 16.56 mm. 13.4 mm.
Newly hatched nestling . 16. is 13;
TAN dave meshing 6 6 EG on, ye 124
JS UG OVE, eo ABest a tae ule cS 1
Birds that have remnants of claws are doubtless, as a
rule, the ones in which the fingers were functional most re-
cently. ‘Traces of this character have not yet been lost; so
consequently the hands still function ontogenetically, to fit
the requirements of fingers, as in the hoatzin. In most cases
of altrical birds the loss of this character either antedated or
paralleled their helplessness; otherwise there would have
been little need for a change to the present state and we
would still see all tiny nestlings crawling about the branches
like little hoatzins. That this was true may be recognized
from the great variation of these parts in the embryo of
today.
The functional fingers being lost at this comparatively
early date, it was natural for the parts of the hand to adjust
themselves to the new conditions: and this adjusting is still
FIG. 119. DIAGRAM OF HAND DEVELOPMENT OF THE GUIANA KISKADEE
356 TROPICAL WILD LIFE IN- BRITISH GUIANA
FIG. 120. DIAGRAM OF HAND DEVELOPMENT OF THE BLACK-NECKED TOUCAN
going on, as the flight of the birds gradually changes. ‘Their
flight in general is of about the same strength, and naturally
it follows that they should develop along more or less paral-
lel lines. There are exceptions to this—as will be shown—
in which the power of flight has been either increased or de-
creased and a change in the development of the hand shows
accordingly.
In such birds as the toucan, the ani, and the catbird,
which do not greatly use their wings in their daily round of
life, there is little or no variation in the growth of either of
the hand segments. ‘Though the actual proportion of the
carpus to the digitus may vary somewhat in the different
birds, due possibly to different ancestral or even present day
habits, the actual method of growth remains practically the
same.
Pteroglossus aracari (1inn.)
Carpus Digitus
Grdayames thing: 22ers. nee 21.3 mm. 13.5 mm.
2 Pele (ee ee Pa L325) Se
COUT ce OE cca aes eee 7 AN iS ga
Galeoscoptes carolinensis (Linn.)
Carpus Digitus
ingore y Ore! hoe Bane see 13.8 mm. 9.2 mm.
Cay, MeSE Ni geese Je Ouea LOsoe ns,
Guay Ol eae ae ee 13. 7 10. *
Acdhailty’ = == ace eee 1S ee a a OR es:
DEVELOPMENT OF WING 357
The grey-breasted martin has a greater variation than
most, but that it is due to the effects of later specialization
is very well shown. In the very young nestling the differ-
ence between the carpus and digitus is well marked, but as
it grows older these proportions approach each other in
length until at maturity they are equal. The young stage is
evidently a shadow of what the bird was in more ancient
times.
Progne chalybea (Gmel.)
Carpus Digitus
SeCyeMest lime sacar. ee 18.5 mm. 13.5 mim.
Thea Sy iis gerne reser en nGe a 14.4%
1 a sa
PA Pit
ENTOMOLOGICAL
By PAUL G. HOWES
RESEARCH ASSISTANT
CHAPTER XeXy.
THE BEES AND WASPS OF BARTICA
In the following chapters, treating chiefly of solitary
wasps, I have endeavored to give an accurate account of the
more intimate aspects of the lives of certain of these insects.
It is hoped that the fascmation which the life stories of these
insects holds for the writer, may be imparted to the reader
not already familiar with them.
To those fortunate ones already versed in the events of
wasp life, I can only say that Guiana is practically a new
and unsearched field, teemimg with wonders of life of which
very little is known. In view of this fact, there should be
something of interest in these pages both to the layman and
to the experienced entomologist.
Before taking up individual studies it is fitting that I
should give a brief outline of the conditions of wasp life in
Bartica district, the general locality in which all of my insect
observations were made. ‘These observations cover a period
of a little over five months and were not selected because of
any particular facts that they may contain, but rather be-
‘ause they were Just whatever I was successful in gathering.
In entomology, one life appears to be as interesting as an-
other. The tiniest creature and the greatest, are as one, m
the secrets they hold for the observer.
During the period of actual field work, from February
15 to the end of July, I found one hundred and seven species
of bees and wasps carrying on nesting activities. Sixty-eight
of these were solitary wasps, nine social wasps, two apterous
Hymenoptera, or species wingless in one sex, seven were soli-
tary bees, ten social bees and eleven were undetermined bees
and wasps.
372 TROPICAL WILD LIFE IN BRITISH GUIANA
FEBRUARY MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST SEPTEMBER
aera ee
Pry as
HH
ae
Eaeeeue: Be
BSS SESS SEER EE PR RSeD Zoe oes
yop
BH PRe es esneeaoRe?, BDDBEESEaao
Seouseeneceressecsed ee’ deetes (ect tteztatnste
Sbsbuevazovazazavefate aecavavesetaezonsferates
if ea Eee]
Srcteeeoes scees ozs ceseeteedl C200 7
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CHAPTER XXXIV
NOTES PROM THE HINTERLAND OF GUIANA
By ihe tecon Valier Go Wiite, he RaGosSs Bo ho NAS
In responding to Mr. William Beebe’s invitation to con-
tribute a chapter to the book he intends to publish, my ob-
ject is, simply to stimulate interest in a little-known corner
of the Colony. It is hoped that, hereby, someone may be led
to pitch his tent and to study wild life there, before existing
species of the fauna and flora follow in the wake of the many
Indian customs, and become as extinct as the dodo.
Just prior to our recall from this inaccessible district,
there was published, in England, in a leaflet of the British
Empire Naturalists’ Association, an offer of mine, to give
a naturalist a free passage up in the missionary’s boat, free
quarters, food, the use of a small tent-boat with sleeping ac-
commodation, the loan of horses, guides, interpreters, and
a free passage down, after some months of research. In
return, the visitor was expected to impart some of the infor-
mation collected, and to afford my wife and myself help in
acquiring a sensible knowledge of the natural history of our
environment. ‘The mention of this abortive attempt may,
perhaps, inspire others to find similar ways of furthering
scientific research, which is so greatly hampered by the cost
of special outfits and transport to distant places.
I am flattered by the invitation to contribute notes to
such a book as this, as I lay no claim to scientific training.
Years ago I knew every bird to be found in North Oxon,
by its flight, song, nest, (if it bred there) and eggs—all, or
any. In this Colony very few of the names, popular or sci-
entific, of species are known to me. I know the musical
*B. EK. N. A.—British Empire Naturalists’ Association.
454 TROPICAL WILD LIFE IN BRITISH GUIANA:
Indian names (many of which are onomatapoetic) of the
various creatures. Mr. James Rodway has done his best,
upon insufficient particulars, to furnish me with scientific
names and those popular names which I had not discovered.
To give only Makuchi names would serve little purpose: so
it is necessary to afford some sort of guide to readers by
means of the scientific names.
One of my first duties was to learn the Makuchi lan-
guage, and to make translations. Natural history records
were, until latterly, of a rough and ready kind. It was found
that a knowledge of the language enabled me to tap a mine
of information, as the Indians, collectively, though not mdi-
vidually, know the outer life history of most forms of wild
life in their country. An Indian interpreter cannot get this
information, as he has no personal knowledge of the subject
as handled by scientists. A European, with some personal
knowledge of natural history, can do better when he has a
working knowledge of the language.
General nature of the country: The district under men-
tion lies between Latitudes 3 and 4.20 N., and is enclosed
by Longitudes 58 and 60 W. In the North are the Maka-
rapan and the fri inges of the Pakaraimas. The South is
walled by the Kanukus. The Eissequibo forms a natural
boundary, on the East; the Takutu and the Ireng, on the
West. The district is drained by the Rapo-nunni, with its
tributaries the Katoka, the Thewarikuru, the Binoni, and the
Rewa, with the Kwatata and the Kwitaro, which are afflu-
ents of the second and the fourth named. ‘The Mokamoka
and the Manari are tributaries of the Takutu; while the
Piara flows from the fabulous Lake Amuku into the Ireng,
receiving its affluent, the Napi, entering from the South.
Numerous other creeks need not be named. Most of them
have no continuity during the dry season, at that period,
but a series of disconnected ponds and swamps. The trav-
eler should be provided with water ere setting out across the
savannahs, especially in the dry season, for it is possible to
HINTERLAND NOTES 455
walk fifteen, or even twenty miles, in certain directions, with-
out finding anything drinkable.
Taking the region between the Pakaraimas and the
Kanukus, the Rapo-nunni and the Takutu, one may describe
it as, principally, savannah. There are levels, some of them
bare, at the foot of the Pakaraimas, and other levels, mostly
dotted with stunted growths, at the foot of the Kanukus.
The intervening country is rising ground, extending from
the Takutu to the Rapo-nunni, the higher parts being to-
wards the latter river. These low hills are dotted with stunt-
ed trees, and carry a coarse grass, which grows in tufts.
There are intervening hollows with swamps, or swampy
ground, according to the season. ‘These damp patches are,
usually, outlined with kwai, or ita palms. Here and there are
nullahs blocked with thick growths and trees. Lake Amuku
does not exist. ‘There is a small pond during the dry sea-
son, and ‘the levels about it are flooded during the rains,
giving the appearance of a large lake. Examination shows
trees growing through the water, in the middle of the “lake.”
An important pond, in respect of size, is Mare-kupu (Mare
—gravel; kupu—pond), secreted in the Mare-pupu bush.
Tawrong 'Thamu Pethaku Kupu is a pond surrounded by
swampy land, thus presenting a considerable expanse of wa-
ter. Other ponds of interest are the Parishara, the Steamed
and Warabai. Throughout the course of the river are many
backwaters, some of which appear to be old ponds which
were tapped by the stream, on its way. The Indians call
them all kupu. They are splendid hunting-grounds for fish.
The smaller ones are dammed, or staked, to prevent the es-
cape of fish, and are poisoned, by beating out the roots of the
‘atha, along the brink and from woodskins paddled criss-
cross over the surface. The stupefied fish show white and
rise to the top, where the larger ones are shot with bow and
arrow, and the smaller ones are picked up by hand. If left
for a time, or if placed in fresh water, the fish recover. T'ak-
ing his hammock and slinging in the open, at night, a natur-
456 TROPICAL, WILDLIFE AN? BRITISH GUlLAN”
alist will find much profit in accompanying a fish-poisoning
expedition, in the form of a two-days’ picnic. The savannah
region described above is broken up by some extensive woods,
or bush. The important ones are: The Maru-kupu bush,
extending from the Rapo-nunni, at Karenampu, several
miles westward, enclosing the pond, on its way; the Binoni
bush, to the north of the famed Kwaimata village; the
Marakanata bush, about fifteen miles to the west of the
Pokaru, and the Kwatata bush, which screens the creek of
that name and a portion of the Warikuru.
Examining the region of the Rapo-nunni, extending
across the Rewa to the EKssequibo: There is savannah land,
broken by narrow lines of low bush, along the left bank of
the river, from Masar Landing to Just past Anai Landing.
Thence to the Essequibo is big forest. On the right bank
of the river, from Katoka creek to Simuni creek, is savannah,
with ponds, swamps and tangles here and there. Aback
from the Simuni to the Rewa is big forest. At the bend,
opposite Massara Landing, is more savannah. East of this
savannah, passing the mouth of the Rewa, to the Essequibo,
is more big forest, broken up with glades, in which the grass
grows rankly. The whole of this stretch, save for a few
isolated Indian houses, near the mouth of the Rapo-nunni,
and the depots, at the mouth, is uninhabited. For conven-
ience of reference we may speak of the Rewa forest, the
Bend savannah, the Simuni bush, the Katoka savannah, and
the Uruata forest. ‘The last begins at the Katoka creek and
extends to the Kanakus, on both sides of the Rapo-nunni.
From the site of the old Kwatata village, along the de-
pression which makes a bed for the creek, extending west-
wards beyond Marakanata village is a wonderful grove of
kwai palms. At the southern foot of the hill upon which
Marakanata stands, the grove expands and encloses a pond.
The thousands upon thousands of palm trees make a mag-
nificent picture. There is another long belt of kwai palms,
running almost parallel with the Tukutu, near to this river.
HINTERLAND NOTES 457
My meteorological records, carefully maintained at the
Mission for over two years, give the following results, which
may, with advantage, be noted by anyone intending to settle
in the district for any length of time to study wild life.
1914 Total rainfall, 20 inches, 25 parts
1915 = GON Ges 62a
In the former year rain fell upon 161 days, and in the
latter year, upon 176 days.
Temperature between 6 and 7 A. M. varied from 68
to 75 degrees Fahr., during 1914, the lowest being recorded
during the period January-March.
Temperature between 6 and 7 A. M. varied from 69
to 75 degrees Fahr., during 1915, the lowest being reached
in February only.
Minimum temperature, taken with instrument supplied
by Government, was 62 degrees Fahr. in January, and 58
degrees Fahr. in December, 1915, only. I found traveling
during the latter part of 1915, requir ed taking a thick blank-
et. The cold, in the early hours of the morning, frequently
awoke me.
The maximum shade temperature, between the hours
of 1 and 2 P. M., was 94 degrees Fahr., in 1914. (October.)
The maximum during the same hours, was 103 Fahr., in
1915. (August.)
True maximum, shade, day-time, reached 105 Fahr., in
August, 1915, upon one occasion only.
I found, by experience, that true maximum for any day
was, usually, recorded after 2 P. M.
The coolest months of the year were shown to be De-
cember, January, February, and the early part of March.
There were some close days, during the December and Janu-
ary rains, which caused little, or no flooding, and no incon-
venience to traveling by land. After the heavy rains of
May-July, the days are close and clammy, until the strong
winds set in, from about the middle of October. Strong
winds occur before, intermittently.
458 TROPICAL WILD: LIFE EN BRIEISH (GUDAN:
During the heavy rains, serious flooding of the district
occurs, in normal years. In spite of the myriads of mosqui-
toes and kabouri flies, which come as one of the Plagues of
Egypt, the naturalist should not flee the country, for he will
see things, now, which hide away during the drier months.
Jaguars and other animals and snakes are driven from the
nullahs and low lands, and may be seen, caught, or shot, as
they wander, homeless, about the higher ground. Fish are
migrating upstream, and are scattering through the creeks
and ponds and even with the floods, to mate and to spawn.
And insects come forth in cosmopolitan crowds, especially
when lights are shown, at night.
The elevation of the district is surprisingly low if the
traveler considers the number of falls and rapids he has left
behind, on his way up the rivers. Somewhat to the west of
Masara Landing is Mt. Egerton, named after His Excel-
lency, Sir Walter Kgerton, who visited the Hinterland and
ascended this hill, in 1913. Its elevation is given as being
2,050 feet. This is the highest point at the souther n end of
the Pakaraimas. Mr. C. W. Anderson gives the average
elevation of the savannahs as 300 feet. T *his cannot be ap-
plied to any parts save the depressions. Mt. Egerton (2,050
feet) is not 1,700 feet above the savannah level. The district
therefore, may be said to comprise the low lands of the inte-
rior. ‘The high lands exist about the Upper Potaro and
extend towards Roraima.
The prevailing winds are the northeast trades. Most
of the rain is br een by them, and the falls are ushered in
with quasi- “Th prareanniace which shake the houses. The cloud-
bank rises over the Essequibo and, generally splits, when
approaching the Makarapan. One pack sweeps along the
Pakaraimas, perhaps bursting out as far as Mare-kupu bush,
the other pack passes over the Rewa forest to Uruata for-
est along the Kanukus.