The Naturalist in Nicaragua: A Narrative of a Residence at the Gold Mines of Chontales; Journeys in the Savannahs and Forests. With Observations on Animals and Plants in Reference to the Theory of Evolution of Living FormsJohn Murray, 1874 - 403 pages |
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Page 4
... beautiful , " by the natives , and I found it afterwards growing wild in the provinces of Matagalpa and Segovia , where it was one of the great favourites of the flower - loving Indians . The land at Greytown and around it is perfectly ...
... beautiful , " by the natives , and I found it afterwards growing wild in the provinces of Matagalpa and Segovia , where it was one of the great favourites of the flower - loving Indians . The land at Greytown and around it is perfectly ...
Page 6
... beautiful tanagers ( Ramphocelus passerinii ) frequent the out - kirts of the forest , all velvety black , excepting a large patch of fiery - red above the tail , which renders the bird very Ch . I. ] BEETLES RESEMBLING CATERPILLARS . 7 ...
... beautiful tanagers ( Ramphocelus passerinii ) frequent the out - kirts of the forest , all velvety black , excepting a large patch of fiery - red above the tail , which renders the bird very Ch . I. ] BEETLES RESEMBLING CATERPILLARS . 7 ...
Page 7
... beautiful and curious insects . Amongst the numerous butterflies , large blue Morphos and narrow , weak - winged Heliconidæ , striped and spotted with yellow , red , and black , were the most conspicuous and most characteristic of ...
... beautiful and curious insects . Amongst the numerous butterflies , large blue Morphos and narrow , weak - winged Heliconidæ , striped and spotted with yellow , red , and black , were the most conspicuous and most characteristic of ...
Page 15
... beautiful flowers , and the greenery was further varied here and there by the white stems of the cecropia trees . Now and then we passed more open spots , affording glimpses each into the forest , where grew , in the dark shade ...
... beautiful flowers , and the greenery was further varied here and there by the white stems of the cecropia trees . Now and then we passed more open spots , affording glimpses each into the forest , where grew , in the dark shade ...
Page 43
... beautiful , and its vast extent and the mere glimpses of its limits and cloud- capped peaks appeal to the imagination rather than to the eye . At this end of the lake the water is shallow , probably filled up by the mud brought down by ...
... beautiful , and its vast extent and the mere glimpses of its limits and cloud- capped peaks appeal to the imagination rather than to the eye . At this end of the lake the water is shallow , probably filled up by the mud brought down by ...
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Common terms and phrases
amongst ancient animals ants Atlantic attacks beautiful beetles birds branches brook brown brushwood bushes butterflies carried cattle Central America Chontales clear colour couvade covered crossed dark descended dogs Ecitons epiphytes feet flowers forest fruit glacial glands grass green Greytown ground hills humming-birds Indians inhabitants insects Jinotega journey Juigalpa lake land larvæ leaf leaf-cutting ants leaves Libertad lodes longicorn look maize Marcgravia Matagalpa Mestizos miles mines mountain mules Nahuatls natives nearly nests never Nicaragua night numerous o'clock Ocotal passed Peña Blanca plains plants prey probably quartz rain range reached Rio Frio river road rock rocky San Ubaldo Santo Domingo savannahs seen shrubs side slope soon Spaniards species spiders steep sting stones tion told town trachyte travelling trees trogons tropical America valley variety veins Velasquez wasp whilst wings yellow young
Popular passages
Page 108 - I-have seen the female sitting quietly on a hranch, and two males displaying their charms in front of her. One would shoot up like a rocket, then suddenly expanding the snow-white tail like an inverted parachute, slowly descend in front of her, turning round gradually to show off both back and front. The...
Page 59 - To quote the words of Mr. Belt: "Unknown are the autumn tints, the bright browns and yellows of English woods ; much less the crimsons, purples, and yellows of Canada, where the dying foliage rivals, nay excels, the expiring dolphin in splendour. Unknown the cold sleep of winter ; unknown the lovely awakening of vegetation at the first gentle touch of spring. A ceaseless round of ever-active life weaves the fairest scenery of the tropics into one monotonous whole, of which the component parts exhibit...
Page 77 - Between the old burrows and the new one was a steep slope. Instead of descending this with their burdens, they cast them down on the top of the slope, whence they rolled down to the bottom, where another relay of labourers picked them up and carried them to the new burrow. It was amusing to watch the ants hurrying out with bundles of food, dropping them over the slope, and rushing
Page 83 - ... were continually passing and repassing. Every time they came along a number of ants were crushed to death. They persevered in crossing for some time, but at last set to work and tunnelled underneath each rail. One day, when the...
Page 29 - ... in necessity — and though no man has anything, yet they are all rich ; for what can make a man so rich as to lead a serene and cheerful life free from anxieties, neither apprehending want himself...
Page 345 - Jonnes took place in the Souffriere. According to him, with a terrific earthquake, clouds of ashes were driven into the air, with violent detonations from a mountain situated at the eastern end of the island. When the eruption had ceased, it was fouud that the whole mountain had disappeared.
Page 108 - ... back and front.... The expanded white tail covered more space than all the rest of the bird, and was evidently the grand feature in the performance. Whilst one male was descending, the other would shoot up and come slowly down expanded.
Page 219 - The leaf-catting ants attacked the young plants and defoliated them ; but I have never seen any of the trees out on the savannahs that are guarded by the Pseudomyrma touched by them, and have no doubt the acacia is protected from them by its little warriors. The thorns, when they are first developed, are soft, and filled with a sweetish, pulpy substance; so that the ant, when it makes an entrance into them, finds its new house full of food. It hollows this out, leaving only the hardened shell of...
Page 25 - They make their temporary habitations in hollow trees, and sometimes underneath large fallen trunks that offer suitable hollows. A nest that I came across in the latter situation was open at one side. The ants were clustered together in a dense mass, like a great swarm of bees, hanging from the roof, but reaching to the ground below. Their innumerable long legs looked like brown threads binding together the mass, which must have been at least a cubic yard in bulk, and contained hundreds of thousands...
Page 77 - ... picked them up and carried them to the new burrow. It was amusing to watch the ants hurrying out with bundles of food, dropping them over the slope, and rushing back immediately for more. They also brought out great numbers of dead ants that the fumes of the carbolic acid had killed. A few days afterwards, when I visited the locality again, I found both the old burrows and the new one entirely deserted, and I thought they had died off; but subsequent events convinced me that the survivors had...