It Is Said To Build
Its Nest In A Deep Hole Beneath The Ground.
I dissected several
specimens:
The gizzard, which was very muscular, contained
beetles, vegetable fibres, and pebbles. From this character,
from the length of its legs, scratching feet, membranous
covering to the nostrils, short and arched wings, this bird
seems in a certain degree to connect the thrushes with the
gallinaceous order.
The second species (or P. albicollis) is allied to the first
in its general form. It is called Tapacolo, or "cover your
posterior;" and well does the shameless little bird deserve its
name; for it carries its tail more than erect, that is, inclined
backwards towards its head. It is very common, and frequents
the bottoms of hedge-rows, and the bushes scattered
over the barren hills, where scarcely another bird can exist.
In its general manner of feeding, of quickly hopping out of
the thickets and back again, in its desire of concealment,
unwillingness to take flight, and nidification, it bears a close
resemblance to the Turco; but its appearance is not quite so
ridiculous. The Tapacolo is very crafty: when frightened by
any person, it will remain motionless at the bottom of a bush,
and will then, after a little while, try with much address to
crawl away on the opposite side. It is also an active bird, and
continually making a noise: these noises are various and
strangely odd; some are like the cooing of doves, others like
the bubbling of water, and many defy all similes. The country
people say it changes its cry five times in the year -
according to some change of season, I suppose. [4]
Two species of humming-birds are common; Trochilus
forficatus is found over a space of 2500 miles on the west
coast, from the hot dry country of Lima, to the forests of
Tierra del Fuego - where it may be seen flitting about in
snow-storms. In the wooded island of Chiloe, which has an
extremely humid climate, this little bird, skipping from side
to side amidst the dripping foliage, is perhaps more abundant
than almost any other kind. I opened the stomachs of several
specimens, shot in different parts of the continent, and in all,
remains of insects were as numerous as in the stomach of a
creeper. When this species migrates in the summer southward,
it is replaced by the arrival of another species coming
from the north. This second kind (Trochilus gigas) is a
very large bird for the delicate family to which it belongs:
when on the wing its appearance is singular. Like others
of the genus, it moves from place to place with a rapidity
which may be compared to that of Syrphus amongst flies,
and Sphinx among moths; but whilst hovering over a flower,
it flaps its wings with a very slow and powerful movement,
totally different from that vibratory one common to most of
the species, which produces the humming noise. I never saw
any other bird where the force of its wings appeared (as in a
butterfly) so powerful in proportion to the weight of its body.
When hovering by a flower, its tail is constantly expanded
and shut like a fan, the body being kept in a nearly vertical
position. This action appears to steady and support the bird,
between the slow movements of its wings. Although flying
from flower to flower in search of food, its stomach generally
contained abundant remains of insects, which I suspect are
much more the object of its search than honey. The note of
this species, like that of nearly the whole family, is
extremely shrill.
[1] Caldeleugh, in Philosoph. Transact. for 1836.
[2] Annales des Sciences Naturelles, March, 1833. M. Gay, a
zealous and able naturalist, was then occupied in studying
every branch of natural history throughout the kingdom of
Chile.
[3] Burchess's Travels, vol. ii. p. 45.
[4] It is a remarkable fact, that Molina, though describing
in detail all the birds and animals of Chile, never once
mentions this genus, the species of which are so common, and
so remarkable in their habits. Was he at a loss how to
classify them, and did he consequently think that silence
was the more prudent course? It is one more instance of the
frequency of omissions by authors, on those very subjects
where it might have been least expected.
CHAPTER XIII
CHILOE AND CHONOS ISLANDS
Chiloe - General Aspect - Boat Excursion - Native
Indians - Castro - Tame Fox - Ascend San Pedro - Chonos
Archipelago - Peninsula of Tres Montes - Granitic
Range - Boat-wrecked Sailors - Low's Harbour - Wild
Potato - Formation of Peat - Myopotamus, Otter and Mice -
Cheucau and Barking-bird - Opetiorhynchus - Singular
Character of Ornithology - Petrels.
NOVEMBER 10th. - The Beagle sailed from Valparaiso
to the south, for the purpose of surveying the southern
part of Chile, the island of Chiloe, and the broken
land called the Chonos Archipelago, as far south as the
Peninsula of Tres Montes. On the 21st we anchored in the
bay of S. Carlos, the capital of Chiloe.
This island is about ninety miles long, with a breadth of
rather less than thirty. The land is hilly, but not mountainous,
and is covered by one great forest, except where a few
green patches have been cleared round the thatched cottages.
From a distance the view somewhat resembles that of Tierra
del Fuego; but the woods, when seen nearer, are incomparably
more beautiful. Many kinds of fine evergreen trees, and
plants with a tropical character, here take the place of the
gloomy beech of the southern shores. In winter the climate
is detestable, and in summer it is only a little better. I
should think there are few parts of the world, within the
temperate regions, where so much rain falls. The winds are
very boisterous, and the sky almost always clouded: to have a
week of fine weather is something wonderful. It is even
difficult to get a single glimpse of the Cordillera: during
our first visit, once only the volcano of Osorno stood out in
bold relief, and that was before sunrise; it was curious to
watch, as the sun rose, the outline gradually fading away in
the glare of the eastern sky.
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