At the point where the river becomes an underground cascade, the ground located near the opening is covered in greenery and looks extremely picturesque. You can see the outside from the far end of the straight gallery, some 240 toises away. Stalactites hanging from the ceiling, like floating columns, stand out from this green background. We shot our guns aimlessly in the dark wherever the screaming birds or the beating of wings made us suspect their nests lay ahead. Bonpland at last managed to kill two guàcharos dazzled by our torches. This is how I was able to sketch this bird, up to now completely unknown to naturalists. We struggled to climb the rise from which the rivulet fell. We saw that the grotto narrowed; its height shrunk to 40 feet as it followed a north-east direction, parallel to the Caripe valley.