A history of the Brazil

by James Henderson

The Savia is like a leveret, with hair similar to that of a hare, and a long tail; breeds in holes or pits; eats fruit; and is much esteemed for its flesh. It is thought to be a species of the caxingle.

There are two breeds of Tamanduhas, or Ant-Bears, small and large. The larger, called Tamanduha-bandeira, is of the bigness of a middling sized hog, to which it assimilates in the body, having the bristles of a wild boar, black and thick, with gray marks on each side; the ears are round and extremely small; the snout very long and tapering, having the appearance at its termination of that of a lamb; its mouth is very small and without teeth; the tongue exceedingly long and narrow, with which it catches the Cupim-ant, its only aliment; the tail is long and shaggy, and curled back towards the neck from whence its name is derived, (bandeira, flag or ensign;) it has short and very thick legs with five toes on each foot, each toe being furnished with a short and thick claw. It imprints a foot-mark like a child’s, runs little, scarcely makes any exertion to escape from its aggressor, and when irritated will advance against a man; but it is only necessary to give it a blow upon the snout and it falls dead on the ground. When it perceives itself attacked it lies on its back and waits for the enemy, which on drawing near, it instantly fastens upon, and will never leave its hold unless the tendons of its legs are cut. Ounces have been found dead with Tamanduhas, firmly fastened to each other. For hunting this animal, the flesh of which is insipid but medicinal in certain diseases, it is necessary to have a dog that will trace its track, but, in order not to run any risk, it is necessary that it should be timorous and cautious.

The Tatu, or Armadillo, of which there are various sorts, differing only in the size and the number of bands of shells which cover them, is of a wonderful figure; the head and ears are similar to those of a pig, the eyes small, the snout long and pointed, the mouth small, the tail long, somewhat similar to the tail of a rat. The legs are short, and the feet are furnished with large and strong claws, with which they can burrow a hole in the ground, for their safety, almost in an instant. This quadruped is covered with a coat of mail, which in its conformation is one of the most extraordinary phenomena in Natural History. The body is dressed in shells, disposed one over the other as in the tail of a lobster, and forms a sort of housing cloth, that conceals the belly; the whole uncovered with hair, and black. Some of the kinds, when danger is near, can roll themselves up entirely in the shell, like a hedge hog, but others not so completely. That kind denominated Tatuim, or Tatuette, is small. The Verdadeiro is larger, and its flesh good,. The Peba has a flat head. The Canastra is of the size of a pig, and its flesh unwholesome. The Bola, (or Ball,) so called in the Brazil, in consequence of concealing all its members under its shell, is of a whitish colour, and its flesh of good flavour.

There are five sorts of Deer, Galheiros, which are large; Sucuaparas, do mato (of the woods;) Catingueiros[46] and Campeiros.[47]

The amphibious monster, with the figure of a lizard, resembling the crocodile in Africa and Asia, has, in the Brazil, the name of Jacare, or Aligator, and is met with in all the lakes and rivers of tranquil current.

The plains of Brazil abound with a great number of Land Tortoises, which never enter the water; their flesh is of fine flavour, and the liver is considered delicious.

Man has less to fear from wild beasts in the Brazil than from reptiles, the species of which are various, and some exceedingly numerous and generally venomous.

The Sucuriuba are affirmed to grow to the extraordinary length of forty feet, and are confined to lakes and pools of dead water, firmly attaching its tail to a root, or the point of a stone at the bottom of the water; it seizes all living animals that approach the margin, and swallows the whole, as a snake in Europe would a mouse or any small animal. It makes a hollow noise below the water, on hearing any sound from without: the otter is its greatest enemy.

The Surucucu, or Surroco, seldom exceeds fifteen feet in length, is of proportionable width, and usually met with in cool and shady places. Its tail is armed with two spears, and its bite is cured with difficulty. Its skin is marked with great symmetry, and is of an ash colour, with brownish spots, and covered with scales.

In the beginning of 1819, a gentleman accompanied by six other persons arrived one evening upon the margins of a lake, near the river Pardo, in the province of St. Paulo, where they dismounted to take some repose. They perceived at a short distance what they supposed to be the trunk of a tree, which shortly afterwards began to move; the contents of a gun was immediately discharged at it, and they then despatched it with their knives. It was a Serpent of the surucucu species, and the gentleman above mentioned assured me that it measured twenty-one feet in length, and four in girth. He had a variety of articles besides several pairs of boots made from its skin, in the city of St. Paulo, one pair of which I brought with me to England. The torpid state which this serpent at first exhibited, arose from its having recently gorged a young bull.