BIRDS OF NEW YORK 1 69 



when he perches on a tree, is obliged to alight on the larger branches and 

 to sit lengthwise of the branch, on account of his small, weak feet which 

 are unable to clasp the twigs like those of true perching birds. This species 

 is more often found resting in this manner among forest and shade trees 

 than is the case with the Whippoorwill, but it is evident that he prefers 

 the ground or rocks and the flat tops of buildings. It frequently alights 

 on the ledges of chimneys and the cornices of tall buildings to wait for 

 the bright light of noonday to pass by. Although the Nighthawk, like 

 the Whippoorwill, feeds largely on moths, a much greater percentage of 

 its food consists of beetles and flies, as would be expected from its more 

 diurnal habits, but it is, nevertheless, a very beneficial species and ought 

 to be stringently protected in all localities. In the southern states it is 

 called " bull-bat," and is destroyed in immense numbers by southern 

 " sportsmen," but this habit, I am glad to say, is passing out of vogue 

 through the influence of the Audubon Society. The Nighthawk lays her 

 eggs on a bare rock or the waste field or an open patch of ground in the 

 woods or on the gravel-covered roofs of buildings in our cities and villages. 

 They are 2 in number, almost elliptical in shape, of a grayish white ground 

 color densely spotted and blotched with blackish, grayish and lavender. 

 They average 1.20 by .86 inches in dimensions. The young are covered 

 with a grayish down and are practically invisible as they sit among the 

 gravel or on the rough stones where they are hatched. The old Night- 

 hawk protects them at the risk of her life and tries to draw the intruder 

 away by fluttering along as if with broken wing to lure him from them. 



Suborder CYPSEU 



Family MICHOPODIDAE 



Swifts 



Palate aegithognathous ; bill deeply fissirostral; rectrices 10; second- 

 aries only 7 in number; nostrils exposed; wings extremely long, pointed 

 and thin, both the distal joints and the primaries being remarkably 

 elongated; feet weak, small, rather skinny than scaly; tarsus usually naked; 

 lateral and middle toes nearly of the same length; the hind toe more or 



