Turkeys, and a new variety of pigeon, having a brown back and slate-coloured breast, on the wing resembling a tame pigeon, congregate in flights sometimes of a thousand together; emus, cockatoos, quail, and parakeets are also very numerous, particularly the latter.

Parakeets and finches were hopping back and forth in large cages near the windows.

"Parakeets are tough, you know.

One of the parakeets burst into song.

He it is that sees the cat in the garden of parakeets, the thief in the upper chamber, the sin of the child with the honey, the women talking indoors and the small hut's innermost things.

Green parakeets with black heads chattered as they flew; noisy green and red parrots climbed among the palms; and huge macaws, some entirely blue, others almost entirely red, screamed loudly as they perched in the trees or took wing at our approach.

In a high palm in the garden a family of green parakeets had taken up their abode and were preparing to build nests.

Macaws, parrots, parakeets screamed at us and chattered at us as we rode by.

They are certainly noisy on the wing; and those that we saw were quiet while they were feeding; but ordinarily when they were perched among the branches, and especially when, as in the case of the little parakeets near the house, they were gathering materials for nest-building, they were just as noisy as while flying.

The parakeets were too noisy, but otherwise were most attractive little birds, as they flew to and fro and scrambled about in the top of the palm behind the house.

Parakeets and red-headed tanagers lit in the trees over our heads.

Around the house the birds were tame: the parrots and parakeets crowded and chattered in the tree tops; jacanas played in the wet ground just back of the garden; ibises and screamers called loudly in the swamps a little distance off.

For example, on the morning of the 3rd, as we were ascending the Paraguay, we again and again saw in the trees on the bank big nests of sticks, into and out of which parakeets were flying by the dozen.

Apparently these parakeets were building or remodelling communal nests; but whether they had themselves built these nests, or had taken old nests and added to or modified them, we could not tell.

Next morning, when we were awakened by the chattering and screaming of the numerous macaws, parrots, and parakeets, we found that nearly all the Indians, men and women, were gathered outside the tent.

A number of tame parrots and parakeets, of several different species, scrambled over the roofs and entered the houses.

It was generally rather silent; we did not hear such a chorus of birds and mammals as we had occasionally heard even on our overland journey, when more than once we had been awakened at dawn by the howling, screaming, yelping, and chattering of monkeys, toucans, macaws, parrots, and parakeets.

We saw brilliantly colored parakeets and trogons.

There were flocks of parakeets colored green, blue, and red.

Some (as the macaws) are larger than the domestic fowl, and some of the parakeets are not larger than a blackbird or even a sparrow.

We did not find any water in the few miles of country traversed in the course of the afternoon, yet everything wore a rich green appearance, and the scenery in some of the dells we crossed, was very picturesque, and quite alive with birds and insects; flights of many-coloured parakeets swept by with a rapidity that resembled the rushing sound of a passing gust of wind.

Flights of large vampires, whistling ducks, many-coloured parakeets, and varieties of small birds, made the river quite alive, and their continued cry of alarm gave vivacity to the scene, and disturbed the stillness that had reigned there for years.

After inspecting the church and village, we walked for some distance along the beach, and saw a great many parrots, parakeets, and large wood-pigeons, of varied and beautiful plumage, flying amongst the splendid kanari* trees, which, from all accounts, afford most valuable timber for ship-building. (*Footnote.

The olive and brown, hoarse-voiced ka-ka, a large, wild parrot, and green, crimson-headed parakeets, may swell the list.

In the brushes the sportsman may find the megapodius, brush-turkey, and white pigeon, and in the forest flocks of white cockatoos, and various parrots and parakeets, besides thrushes, orioles, leatherheads, etc., but I shall not now enter upon the ornithology of the district.