The yguanà, an animal of the lizard kind, closely resembles the dragon which St. George is represented overthrowing. It is sometimes more than an ell long. Its belly is large, its skin clothed with green, white, and yellow scales, elegantly varied with red. From the head to the extremity of the tail, the spine of the back is surmounted by a denticulated fin. Its thick and very long tail is marked with kinds of black rings, intermixed with red ones, and ends in a very slender point. It is furnished with large black eyes, a nose spreading as wide as the lips, short teeth, a cloven tongue, which, when irritated, it moves very quickly, four feet, and lower down five nails, wide like the sole of the foot, and covered with a thin web, which assists it in swimming; for it sometimes swims in the water, sometimes climbs trees, and sometimes lurks for a long time in corners of houses, being very patient of hunger. It never does harm to any one. It feeds upon honey, little birds' eggs, oranges, sweet citrons, and other fruits. It is incredibly tenacious of life, for after being stripped of its skin, and having received frequent wounds on the head, it will not die, till its head be severed from its body. Though the horrible form of the yguanà inspires all beholders with terror, yet its extremely white flesh delights the palates of many. Deceived by my companion, I ate it for fish, and at another time for chicken, and pronounced it exceedingly savoury. But I never could prevail upon myself knowingly to taste the yguanà, so great was the horror which I conceived of its external appearance. The yguanà lays about forty eggs in as many days; they are round, about the size of a walnut, and of a white or yellowish hue, like hens' eggs. Some people eat them fried. As they abound in their own native fat, water is poured on them instead of oil or butter. They say that little stones are sometimes found in the head of the yguanà, which, when ground to powder, and drunk with a wholesome potion, or simply applied to the body, diminish or remove stone in the kidneys. Others affirm that a stone, an ounce in weight, is found in some other part of this animal's body, which, when reduced to powder, and drunk in tepid water, removes obstructions of the bladder. I never saw any stones of this kind—never tried their efficacy. Besides this, other kinds of lizards, of different forms and colours, are seen in Paraguay, but I have nothing remarkable to relate of them. The chameleon is very seldom seen here. I once saw one jump hastily out of a boat which lay on the ground near the shore, but had not time to examine it closely.
RIVER-WOLVES.
Many rivers, and even lesser streams, produce two kinds of wolves, a larger, and a smaller. Sometimes the Abiponian women tame the whelps at home, suckling them like their own children. They also do the same kind office for puppies, although no wife can suckle another person's child without greatly offending her husband, and running the risk of being divorced. These wolves are killed with various weapons by the Abipones, who, though their flesh is not fit for food, make use of their skins, which are of a dusky colour, but yellow at intervals, with extremely soft hair.
SEALS.
Seals are remarkable for the size of their bodies, and are very numerous in the river Plata, especially at the mouth by which it enters the sea. They have more fat than flesh, so that hunger alone could induce me to taste them. But their skin, of an elegant yellow colour, marked with a black line on the back, and covered with very soft hair, is much prized by Europeans. Our companions, who, at the command of King Philip the Fifth, sailed to the shores of Magellan, record that seals in that place often exceed a bullock two years old in size; that they often strive with one another on the sandy shore, lifting up their bodies as straight as a pillar, and that many geographers have erred in saying that these seals have a mane, and in giving them the name of sea-lions. This is no affair of mine; let others decide the point. I think the dispute is all about a name.
FROGS AND TOADS.
At the end of the amphibious crew come frogs and toads, which swarm in all the rivers, lakes, and marshes, and even the very plains of Paraguay. But what is their use, what their occupation? They go on singing their old complaint in the mud, though in Paraguay they have nothing to complain of; for not being reckoned amongst the number of eatables, and being entirely excluded from the kitchen, they are neither desired nor attacked, and consequently live in the completest security. To destroy the race of frogs, I had long wished that the voracious Indians would take it into their heads to eat them, for whenever we slept in the open air by the side of a river or lake, we were exceedingly annoyed by their croaking. Their voice, as well as colour, is extremely various, for some utter a gentle, clear, sharp sound, others, perhaps the more aged ones, a rough, hoarse, disagreeable croaking. Of toads, horse-leeches, and other insects of that description, we shall speak in another place.
BIRDS.
Paraguay has scarcely any European bird, except the swallow, but it abounds in native ones, foreign to Europe. The former excel in the sweetness of their voice, the latter in the elegance of their plumage. Out of many I will describe a few.