Guan

(Zool.) See PENELOPE. Gua'na, n. (Zool.) See IGUANA. Gua'na, a name of several small islands in the W. Indies, the most important being off the N. coast of Abaco; area, about 35 sq. m. Guanabaco'a, a town of Cuba, on the E. side of the harbor of Havana; pop . abt. 18,000. Guanaca'che, a lagoon in the Argentine Republic, between Mendoza and San Juan. It consists of a number of lakes and marshes, interspersed with numerous islands. Guanacas, (Paramo De,) a spur of the Andes in the United States of Colombia; Lat. 2o N., Lon. 76° W. Guana'co, n .; pl . GUANACOS. [Sp.] ( Zool .) A South American wool-bearing quadruped; a species of llama . Guanapa'ro, a river of Venezuela, joins the Portu gues a 30 m. N.W. of San Fernando de Apure. Guanari'to, a river of Venezuela, joins the Portuguesa' abt. 154 m. S. W. of Caracas. Guanari'to, a town of Venezuela, on Guanare River, abt. 50 m. E. of the town of Guanare. Guanaxuato, or GUANAJUATO, ( hwa -na-hwa'to,) a state of Mexico, abt. 110 m. N.W. of the city of Mexico: area, about 12,618 sq. m. Rivers. Rio Grande, and some smaller streams. Surface , mountainous; soil , in some parts fertile. Min . Gold, silver, lead, tin, iron, antimony, sulphur, cobalt, ochre, salts, and marble; at one time being the richest mineral region in the known world. Cap . Guanaxuato. Pop . (1895) 968,113. -A city, cap. of the above dept., about 160 m. N. W. of the city of Mexico; Lat. 21° N., Lon. 101° W. It is in a narrow mountain defile, 6,017 feet above sea level, and consists of several villages built around the mines to which it mainly owes its importance, though there are manufactures of linen and woollen cloth, soap, powder, tobacco, . It was founded by the Spaniards in 1545, and about the beginning of the present century contained 70,600. Pop . at present about 63,000. Guancabam'ba, a village of Ecuador; Lat. 5o 10o S., Lon. 79° 30′ W. It is built 6,500 ft. above the sea. Guancabeli'ca. See HUANCAVELICA. Guandacol', a village of the Argentine Republic, in a fertile valley of the same name, about Lat. 26° S., Lon. 69° W. Guane'ro, a river of Venezuela, joins the Apure abt. 150 m. S. E. of Merida. Guaniferous, a. [Eng. guano , and Lat. ferre, to bear.] Producing guano. Gu'anite, n. ( Min .) Same as STRUVITE, q. v. Guano, ( gwa'no ,) n. [From the Peruvian huano , dung.] The excrement of sea-birds which has accumulated for ages on certain tropical islands, principally along the coasts of Peru, Bolivia, and Africa. It has been employed as a fertilizer by the inhabitants of Peru from the most remote periods, and by its use they have rendered fertile the otherwise unproductive sandy soils along the coast. While the Incas ruled, the birds were protected by very severe laws. Any one landing on the guano island during the time the birds were breeding, or who killed any of them at any time, was put to death. In 1804 specimens of G. were first brought to Europe by Humboldt, who sent them for examination to Fourcroy, Vauquelin, and Klaproth, the best analytical chemists of the day. He described it as deposited in layers 50 or 60 feet thick, upon the granite of many of the islands off the coast of Peru, and stated that during 300 years the coast-birds had deposited G. only a few lines in thickne ; thus giving an idea what an immense period of time has been required to form the guano beds. The bones and feathers of the birds are found among the recent layers of the G., but the older deposits often exhibit the appearance of the phosphate of lime rocks of the older formations, and are an interesting instance of the conversion of recent accumulations of organic matter into what appears like an ancient rock. In the guano rock all traces of animal life have disappeared, the heat and moisture of the tropics having induced chemical changes that in the lapse of time have changed these organic deposits into crystalline ma es. A large portion of the Peruvian G. is imported from the Chinch a Islands. These islands, three in number, are 5 or 6 miles in circumference, composed of granite and covered with G. in some places to a height of nearly 200 feet. The value of their G. is due to the dryne of the climate, the ammonia and some of the phosphates of these deposits being readily washed out by rain. This has reduced the value of the Bolivian and some other guanos, and largely ruined those of the West Indies, Africa, and Australia. The best Peruvian G., that of the Chinch a Islands, contained about 15 per cent, of moisture, 51 of organic matter, 22 of phosphate of lime, 2 of silica, 3 of phosphoric acid, and 6 of alkaline salts, its value being largely due to its nitrogen, 1 ton of this material being equal in value to 33 tons of farm-yard manure. An active demand has long since depleted the Chinch a guanos, whose use ceased in 1874 from lack of supplies.- Fish Guano . A substitute for G. which has come into considerable use consists of fish dried and ground to powder. For this purpose all animal life of the sea, such as mu els, starfish, crustaceans, and the waste material of the fisheries may be profitably employed. The difficulty of using this material, on account of its bulk and unpleasant character, has been obviated by the method, adopted about 1862, of getting rid of its 60 or 80 per cent. of moisture by drying, and subsequently grinding the remnant to a fine powder. Peruvian G. comes from fish which have been used as food by sea birds, while fish G. contains all the nitrogen and phosphoric acid of the fish, and thus forms an excellent substitute. The heads and backbones of the cod, obtained from the cod-fisheries of Norway, are made into this material, and refuse fish elsewhere are largely used for manure, the annual production being estimated at 75,000 tons. See FERTILIZERS. Guantajaya, ( hwan - ta -he'a,) a rich mining district of Peru, prov. Tarapaca. Guantana'mo, or CUMBER LAND HARBOR, an excellent harbor on the S. coast of Cuba, abt. 45 m. E. of Santiago. Lat. of the E. headland 19° 53′ N., Lon. 75° 15′ W. Guanu'co. See HUANUCO. Guapai, or GUAPEY, ( hwa - pe ', ) a river of Bolivia, flows into the Mamore. Guapi-Morim, ( hwa - pee -mo-reeng,) a village of Brazil, prov. of Rio Janeiro; pop. 2,500. Guapo're, a river of Brazil, prov. of Matto-Gro o, joins the Mamore to form the Madeira. Guara, n . (Zool.) The Scarlet ibis. See TANTALIDE. Guaraguan, CAÑO, ( kan -yo hwa-ra-whan,) an embouchure of the Orinoco River, enters the Atlantic 55 m. N.W. of the Naviros. Guar ambari', a river of Paraguay, joins the Paraguay River abt. 25 m. N.W. of Concepcion.