HIRUNDINID.E — THE SWALLOAVS — HIRUNDO. 



105 



An abundant species tlirongliout C'alifoi-nia, and as far north as Columbia 

 River, on the coast. I saw the first of tlieni at San Diego March 1:1, 1862; 

 and at San Francisco they arri\'e about jMarch 25th, l>eing a week earlier 

 than the barn swallow, and also remaining later in autumn. I liave seen 

 them as late as October 5th, and they probably remain longer toward tlie 

 south. They live almost e^'erywhere during summer, except on the high 

 and wooded mountains, building on the cUfls of the sea-coast, where the 

 cold wind blows, as well as in the hottest valleys, under eaves of houses, and 

 sometimes on the sides of large branches or trunks of trees. Their bottle- 

 shaped nests of mud, lined with straw, are conspicuous objects Mdierever tliey 

 are allowed to build them, some even being visible in the noisy city of San 

 Francisco, which only this species ^^sits, sweeping through the crowded 

 streets with entire fearlessness. The eggs are usually four, white, spotted 

 with dusky-brown, and they hatch two broods in the season in most parts 

 of the State. Wlicn about tlie nest, they make a creaking noise very differ- 

 ent from the twitter of the barn swallow. 



In June I saw a flock of tliese l)irds Inisily catching young grasslicippers 

 on tlie dry hillside, where these insects were swarming. As I huxe never 

 heard of other swallows eating grasshojipers, I suppose that this species is 

 specially adapted for such food, other insects being very scarce during the 



H. hmifions. 



dry season, and in the dry regions it inhabits so frequently, where other 

 species of swallow are unknown. 



This swallow leaves Santa Cruz about September 1st, Ijut probalily only 

 goes to the large rivers and lakes of the interior. 



To determine the question as to bedbugs being lirouyht to houses by 

 these swallows, I allowed about twelve pairs to raise broods under the ea^'es 

 of the house I lived in at Santa Cruz, in 186(3. They built between April 

 12th and 2C)th, and the young were fledged July 1st ; some also had laid 

 new broods of two and tliree eggs by the 5th. On tearing down the nests I 

 found bugs {Cimcx) in every one, whate^•er jjart of the roof it occupied, 

 showing that they were hrougld hij the birds, none having been observed in 



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