374 BULLETIN 17 9, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



brown breast. The immature Bahama swallow closely resembles the 

 yomig tree swallow and might easily be mistaken for it, though it has 

 a grayer head and back. 



DISTRIBUTION 



Range. — This is a nonmigratory species confined to the Bahama 

 Islands, chiefly the northern part of this archipelago (Great Bahama, 

 Abaco, Eleuthera, New Providence, Andros, and the Anguilla 

 Islands). 



Casual records. — A specimen was collected on Garden Key, Dry 

 Tortugas, Fla., on April 7, 1890 ; and another was taken on September 

 3, 1890, at Tarpon Springs, Fla. 



TACHYCINETA THALASSINA LEPIDA Mearns 



VIOLET-GREEN SWALLOW 



Plate 54 



HABITS 



This beautiful swallow is well named; the soft, velvety plumage 

 in subtle hues of violet and green on the upper surface, the con- 

 spicuous white patches on the sides of the rump, and the pure white 

 lower surface combine to make a charming whole, a dainty feathered 

 gem. It enjoys a wide distribution west of the Great Plains and 

 from Alaska to Mexico, and in some places it is one of the most 

 abundant species. A. E. Shirling (1935) writes: "The violet-green 

 Swallow * * * is to the Colorado mountains what the English 

 Sparrow is to eastern and central states. It is the most common 

 bird about cottages and towns. In respect to relative abundance, 

 it exceeds the English Sparrow for the sparrow's range is confined 

 to human surroundings of houses, barns, and picnic grounds. The 

 violet-green Swallow, while most abundant in the neighborhood of 

 human dwellings, ranges widely up the mountain slopes and unfre- 

 quented forest lands." 



Near the coast in southern Alaska, as far north as Ketchikan, in 

 British Columbia and in the vicinity of Seattle, Wash., we recorded 

 the violet-green swallow almost daily, where it seemed to be a com- 

 mon summer bird at low altitudes; here it frequented the towns and 

 villages, much as our tree swallow does in the East, apparently trust- 

 ful of human society and ready to accept such nesting accommoda- 

 tions as human structures offered. It was also seen commonly in 

 clearings in the woods w^here there were dead trees for nesting sites, 

 especially in the vicinity of lakes and streams. In California, also, 

 its haunts and habits are similar, strongly reminding us of our 



