32 TiiH Swallow 



FamUy—IIIRUXDINID. E. 



The Swallow. 



Ilinoido yu\tica, LiNN. 



THE Swallow breeds throughout the greater part of Europe, Asia, north of 

 the great luountaiu rauges, and Northern Africa : in winter it has been 

 obtained all over India, to Burma and Malaysia, and throughout Africa : 

 exceptional cases of its occurrence in East Finmark, vSpitzbergeu, and Nova Zembla 

 have been recorded. 



Throughout Great Britain the Swallow is generally distributed, although it is 

 said rarely to breed in Shetland, and never in the Outer Hebrides. According to 

 Capt. Feilden it is common in the Faroes, in Ma}^ but is not known to nest 

 there. At the season of migration the Swallow collects into flocks, and }ilr. Fro- 

 liawk, in September (about the 28th or 30th), counted 113 sitting on one stretch 

 of telegraph wire at Buckland, in South Devon. 



In adult plumage this species has the forehead chestnut, upper parts prussian- 

 blue, wings and tail brown, with the outer webs of the feathers bluish-green ; the 

 inner web of the innermost greater wing-covert greyish- white ; all the tail-feathers 

 excepting the central pair, with white patches on the inner webs : under parts 

 almost white, the throat chestnut ; a belt of prussian-blue across the breast ; under 

 wing-coverts and belly huffish ; bill and feet black ; iris hazel. The female chiefly 

 differs from the male in the shorter tapering outer tail feathers, somewhat duller 

 colouring, whiter under parts, and narrower breast-belt. Young birds are duller, 

 with the chestnut portions paler, and the spots on the tail somewhat rufous. 



It is believed that the Swallow pairs for life, and it is certain that it returns 

 year after year to the same breeding spot, sometimes even utilizing the previous 

 year's nest ; it is naturally a gregarious bird ; though perhaps not so much so as 

 the House- and Sand-Martins ; where one nest occurs, in chimney, barn, or out- 

 house, there are sure to be three or four close b}^ but I never observed more than 

 half a dozen or so, even in the largest barn, whereas it is not unusual to see eight 

 or ten nests of the House-Martin under the eaves of a house, whilst the occupied 

 burrows of Sand-Martins in a single sand-bank frequently number from twenty to 

 thirty. 



