122 The Ottawa Naturalist. [August 



About this time we were confronted with another question. 

 The parent birds partly walled up the entrance to the nest. Why 

 did they do so only when the young were nearly fledged? So far, 

 the young, as they grew stronger, would sit with heads to the 

 door, waiting for food. It must have been much nicer for them 

 than if they had been only a small hole for a doorway. But the 

 parental love of the old birds ruled all the family affairs, and now 

 the doorway was sealed up to a small passage such as other nests 

 have. Then the young, when crowding to the front, could not 

 fall out, as there was only room for one to get food at once, and 

 an old bird was there to keep that one back. 



About a week after, the young were able to fly ; they were 

 removed to a locality along a river vi^here there was an abundance 

 of insects. It was at this latter place that the writer had the 

 pleasure of watching them go to roost. There was a flock of 

 about three hundred birds composed of Cliff, Barn and Bank 

 Swallows. After sundown on a damp day they were seen to settle 

 in some tall coarse grass ; then, as if frightened, they would all 

 rise, wheel about in the air and be joined by more of their kind. 

 This performance was several times rehearsed, and, while flying 

 about, they would occasionally shake themselves to throw the col- 

 lected water from their backs. This they could do while flying as 

 well as perching birds could do if standing on a limb or other firm 

 footing. Several were seen to thus shake themselves, and on two 

 or three occasions were within twenty feet of the observer. At 

 last, when nearly dark, all settled into the coarse tall grass again 

 and were at rest. 



