428 BULLETIN 17 9, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



chicken eggs and now and then bud scales, panicles, seed tops, petals 

 of such flowers as dogwood {Cornus forida)^ Carices, and J uncus. 

 Into their composition go pieces of deciduous leaves and petioles, 

 notably those of the black willow {Salix nigra) and heartleaf willow 

 (Salix cordata) . A number of nests curiously contained moist horse 

 dung; we wonder why. Perhaps the vile smell tends to ward off 

 vermin." 



R. F. Mason, Jr. (MS.), reports the wide use of holly leaves in 

 Maryland. In coastal Virginia H. H. Bailey says that seaweed is 

 largely used in nest construction. 



In Florida, according to Howell (1932), nests are made of dried 

 rootlets, grass, weed stems, and a few dried beans and are lined with 

 dried or partly burnt grass. 



Dickey (MS.) writes: "Curiously, the parents supply broods daily 

 with beds of fresh green leaves of the common locust {Rohinia pseu- 

 doacacia). Soiled leaves are removed, with the dung." 



A departure from the usual type of nest construction is described 

 by Goss (1886), who says: "Nest in holes in banks of streams, 

 constructed of the same material as the Barn Swallow." He de- 

 scribes the nest of the latter bird as "constructed of layers of mud 

 and grasses, and lined with fine grasses and downy feathers." 



"In the vicinity of Fortine, Mont.," says Weydemeyer (1933), "I 

 have been able to determine the stage of nesting, at some time dur- 

 ing the season, shown by thirty-four nests of the Rough-winged 

 Swallow. * * * I give below the range of dates, for different 

 stages of nesting, which these records show. Nest under construc- 

 tion: May 8, 1931, to June 15, 1929. Eggs (seven nests), June 14, 

 1928, to July 6, 1923." 



Eggs. — [Author's note: The rough- winged swallow lays any- 

 where from four to eight eggs to a set, but the set usually consists 

 of six or seven eggs ; thus the sets will average larger than those laid 

 by the bank swallow. They are more elongated, as a rule, than the 

 eggs of other swallows, usually elliptical-ovate. They are somewhat 

 glossy, pure white, and unmarked. The measurements of 50 eggs 

 average 18.3 by 13.2 millimeters ; the eggs showing the four extremes 

 measure 20.6 by 14.7, 17.3 by 15.0, 16.5 by 12.7, and 17.8 by 12.2 milli- 

 meters.] 



Yowng. — ^A. F. Skutch (MS.) says that the female incubates the 

 eggs for 16 days, while Dickey (MS.) gives 12 days. Apparently 

 the male occasionally helps his mate with incubation duties, and 

 Blake (1907) mentions a nest under his observation in Vermont 

 where the birds took turns at sitting on the eggs. 



Dickey (MS.) says: "The young at first are mere weak infants, 

 gray and yellow, with the blood vessels and organs showing some- 



