O. parvulus, can be considered as varieties of one species, then the experience of
all the best ornithologists must be given up, and whole genera must be blended
into one species. I cannot myself doubt that Jli. irifasciatus, and 3 t. parvulus are
as distinct species as any that can be named in one restricted genus.
The habits o f these three species are similar, and they evidently replace each
other in the natural economy of the different islands ; nor can I point out any difference
between their habits and those of 31. Thenca of Chile ; I imagined, however,
that the tone of their voice was slightly different. They are lively, inquisitive,
active birds, and run fa s t; (I cannot assert, positively, that 31. Thenca runs). They
are so extremely tame, a character in common with the other birds of this Archipelago,
that one alighted on a cup of water which I held in my hand, and drank out
of it. They sing pleasantly ; their nest is said to be simple and open. They seem
to prefer the dry sterile regions nearer the coast, but they are likewise found in
the higher, damper and more fertile parts of the islands. To these latter situations,
however, they seem chiefly attracted by the bouses and cleared ground of
the colonists. I repeatedly saw the 31. melanotis at James Island, tearing bits of
meat from the flesh of the tortoise, which was cut into strips and suspended to
dry, precisely in the same manner as I have so often observed the 31. Orpheus, in
La Plata, attacking the meat hung up near the Estancias.
1. Fuen-ieius RUFUS. Vieill.
Furnarius rufus, Vieill., Ency. Meth. 513.
Merops rufus, Gmel. PI. cnl. 739.
Opetiorhynchus rufus, Tern. Man.
Turdus vadius, Licht. Cat.
Figulus albogularis, Spix. Av. pi. Ixxviii. f. 1 & 2.
Fournier, B u f fA z a r a , No. 221.
This bird is common in Banda Oriental, on the banks of the P la ta ; but I
did not see it further southward. It is called by the Spaniards Casaro, or housebuilder,
from the very singular nest which it constructs. The most exposed
situation, as on the top of a post, the stem of an opuntia, or bare rock, is chosen.
The nest consists of mud and bits of straw ; it is very strong, and tlie sides are
thick ; in shape it resembles a depressed beehive or oven, and hence the name of
the genus. Directly in front of the mouth of the nest, which is large and arched,
there is a partition, which reaches nearly to the roof, thus forming a passage or
ante-chamber to the true nest. At Maldonado, in the end of May, the bird was
busy in building. The Furnarius is very common in Banda Oriental; it often
haunts the bushes in the neighbourhood of houses ; it is an active bird, and
both walks and runs quickly, and generally by starts ; it feeds chiefly on Coleop-
tera ; it often utters a peculiar, loud, shrill, and quickly reiterated cry.
2 . F u r n a r iu s c u n i c u l a r iu s . G. R . Gray.
Alauda cunicularia, Vieill.
Alauda fissirostra, K ittl. Mem. I’Acad. St. Peters, ii. pi. 3.
Certhilaiida cunicularia, D'Orh. Sf L a fr . Mag. de Zool.
This bird has a considerable geographical range. On the eastern side of
the continent it is found from about 40° (for I never saw one in the southern
districts of Patagonia) northward to at least 30°, and perhaps much further. On
the western side its southern limit is the neighbouibood of Concepcion, where
the country becomes dry and open, and it ranges throughout Chile (specimens
were procured from Valparaiso) to at least as far north as Lima, in lat. 12°, on the
coast of Peru. I may here observe, that the northern limit of all birds, which are
lovers of dry countries, such as this Furnarius and some of the species oí Mimus,
is not probably at Lima but near Cape Blanco, 10° south of the Equator, where
the open and parched land of Peru blends (as it was described to me) rather
suddenly into the magnificent forests of Guayaquil. This Furnarius constantly
haunts the driest and most open districts; and hence sand-dunes near the coast
afford it a favourite resort. In La Plata, in Northern Patagonia, and in
Central Chile, it is abundant: in the former country it is called Casarita, a name
which has evidently been given from its relationship with the Casaro, or Furnarius
rufus, for, as we shall see, its nidification is very different. It is a very
tame, most quiet, solitary little bird, and like the English robin {Sylvia rubecula)
it is usually most active early in the morning and late in the evening. When
disturbed it flies only to a short distance ; it is fond of dusting itself on the
roads ; it walks and runs (but not very quickly), and generally by starts. I
opened the stomachs of some, and found in them remains of Coleóptera, and
chiefly Carabidce. At certain seasons it frequently utters a peculiar, shrill but
gentle, reiterated cry, which is so quickly repeated as to produce one running
sound. In this respect, and in its manner of walking on the ground, and in its
food, this species closely resembles the Casaro, but in its quiet manners it differs
widely from that active bird. Its nidification is likewise different, for it builds its
nest at the bottom of a narrow cylindrical hole, which is said to extend horizontally
to nearly six feet under giound. Several of the country people told me,
that when boys, they had attempted to dig out the nest, but had scarcely ever
succeeded in getting to the end. The bird chooses any low bank of firm sandy
soil by the side of a road or stream. At the settlement of Bahia Blanca the walls
are built of hardened mud; and I noticed one, enclosing a courtyard, where I
lodged, which was penetrated by round holes in a score of places. On asking
the owner the cause of this, he bitterly complained of the little Casarita, several
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