or "Flagellation of St
Francis," as it is called in Mexico, and it is often interrupted by an
interval of two or three weeks of fine weather, known as the
_Veranillo de San Juan_, or "Little summer of St John." In the rainy
season, the morning has usually a clear sky; about two or three
o'clock in the afternoon the clouds begin to gather in great cumulus
masses; suddenly the lightning flashes out and the rain crashes down;
and by evening the sky is clear and starry. North winds are most usual
during the dry season. On the Atlantic coast the trade-winds may bring
rain in any month, and, owing to the moist atmosphere, the heat is
more oppressive. The rainfall may vary in successive years from less
than 50 in. to nearly 200 in., owing to the occurrence of
cloud-bursts. Frosts are not rare above 7000 ft., but snow seldom
falls.

_Fauna_.--The fauna of Central America is more closely connected with
the fauna of South than with that of North America. As the region is
comparatively small, and its limits conventional, there are
comparatively few species that it can claim as peculiarly its own. It
is almost entirely free from the presence of animals dangerous to man.
Of felines it possesses the jaguar (_Felis onza_), popularly called
the tiger; the cuguar (_Felis concolor_), popularly called the lion;
the tigrillo (_Felis tigrina_), which is sometimes kept tame; and
other species. Several species of monkeys (_Mycetes_ and _Ateles_) are
numerous in the warm coast region. The Mexican deer (_Cervus
mexicanus_) has a wide range both in the lowlands and highlands.
Besides the tapir there are several varieties of wild pig, such as the
marrano de monte (_Sus torquatus_) and the jabali or javali (_Sus
labiatus javali_). The _Edentata_ are represented by a species of
armadillo, the honey-bear (_Myrmecophaga tomandua_), and the
_Myrmecophaga didactyla;_ and among the rodents may be mentioned,
besides rats, hares and rabbits, the fruit-eating cotorra and
tepes-cuinte (_Dasyprocta aguti_ and _Coelogenys paca_), and the
troublesome _Geomys mexicana._ The manatee is common in all the larger
streams. Much annoyance is caused to the agriculturist by the little
marsupial called the tacuacine, or the _Didelphys carcinora,_ its
allied species. The bats are so numerous that villages have sometimes
had to be left to their undisputed occupancy. In the south-east of
Costa Rica