The Cariamas inhabit the extensive open meadows of Central Brazil, and are also met with throughout a great portion of South America. In the states of La Plata they are replaced by a very similar species. These birds live in pairs or small families, and if disturbed, at once take refuge in the long grass that covers their favourite haunts, peeping forth from time to time, in order to reconnoitre, and forthwith returning to their place of safety. So cautious are they, indeed, that Burmeister tells us he has often heard their voices close to him during an entire day, without ever succeeding in catching a glimpse of them. In the daytime the Cariamas are occupied in searching for the insects, snakes, and other reptiles upon which they subsist. Owing to the great services they render by destroying the latter noxious creatures, the natives are forbidden by law to kill them. Burmeister tells us that they also eat berries. Unlike the Cranes, these birds are constantly in motion throughout the day. According to the Prince von Wied, they occasionally repose upon the branches, but if alarmed, at once return to the ground, and endeavour to save themselves by running, a mode of locomotion which they perform with such extraordinary rapidity as to outstrip a horseman. The harsh loud voice of this species has been compared to the barking or yelping of a young dog, or the hoarse cry of a bird of prey. These most unpleasing sounds are sometimes continued for half an hour at a time, the noisy performer sitting upright on a branch, and turning its head about in a sort of accompaniment to its harsh screams, which Burmeister remarks are enough to drive any person with weak nerves from its vicinity. During the period of incubation, the males contend fiercely, tearing each other with their beaks, and presenting a most ludicrous appearance, as, with plumage inflated and tail fully spread, they bound into the air. The nest is usually placed in trees, at no great height from the ground, and is formed of dry twigs, lined with a coating of clay or dung. The two eggs, which are about as large as those of the Peacock, have a white shell, sparsely dotted with rust-red. The young, when first hatched, are clad in thick reddish down, marked with deep greyish brown, and remain for some time in the nest. The Crested Screamers are readily tamed and reared in the poultry-yard. Burmeister saw two of these birds that were domesticated in a farmhouse, standing warming themselves at the fire among a group of men and children. If driven forcibly to one side, they merely retired quietly to a short distance, and almost immediately returned to their former position. Although the flesh of the Cariama is white and well-flavoured, it is seldom killed, as its swiftness of foot renders its capture a work of much difficulty, even to a mounted sportsman. The plan usually adopted, according to the Prince von Wied, is to follow it patiently on horseback,