THE CHIMNEY SWIFT. 



^HIEF POKAGON, of the 

 Pottawattamie Indians, in 

 an article in Tlie Osprey, 

 writes delightfully of the 

 Chimney Swift, and we 

 quote a portion of it describing a 

 peculiar habit of the bird. The chief 

 was a youth when he made the observa- 

 tion, and he writes in the second 

 person : 



"As you look, you see the head of 

 the young chief is turning slowly 

 around, watching something high in 

 air above the stream ; you now begin 

 to look in the same direction, catching 

 glimpses every now and then, of the 

 segment of a wild revolving ring of 

 small unnumbered birds circling high 

 above the trees. Their twittering 

 notes and whizzing wings create a 

 musical, but wild, continued roar. 

 You now begin to realize he is 

 determined to understand all about 

 the feathered bees, as large as little 

 birds, the village boy had seen. The 

 circle continues to decrease in size, 

 but increases the revolution until all 

 the living, breathing ring swings over 

 the stream in the field of your vision, 

 and you begin to enquire what means 

 all this mighty ingathering of such 

 multitude of birds. The young chief 

 in admiration claps his hands, leaping 

 towards the stream. The twittering, 

 whizzing roar continues to increase ; 

 the revolving circle fast assumes a 

 funnel shape, moving downward until 

 the point reaches the hollow in the 

 stub, pouring its living mass therein 

 until the last bird dropped out of 

 sight. Rejoicing in wonder and admir- 

 ation, the youth walks round the base 

 of the stub, listening to the rumbling 

 roar of fluttering wings within. Night 

 comes on, he wraps his blanket closer 

 about him, and lies down to rest until 

 the coming day, that he may witness 

 the swarming multitudes pass out in 

 early morning. But not until the 



hour of midnight does he fall asleep, 

 nor does he wake until the dawn of 

 day, when, rising to his feet, he looks 

 upward to the skies. One by one the 

 stars disappear. The moon grows pale. 

 He listens. Last night's familiar roar 

 rings in his ears. He now beholds 

 swarming from out the stub the 

 living, breathing mass, forming in 

 funnel shape, revolving like a top, 

 rising high in air, then sweeping out- 

 ward into a wide expanding ring, until 

 the myriads of birds are scattered 

 wide, like leaves before the whirl- 

 wind." 



And then what do they do ? Open 

 the mouth of a swallow that has been 

 flying, and turn out the mass of small 

 flies and other insects that have been 

 collected there. The number packed 

 into its mouth is ahnost incredible, 

 for when relieved from the constant 

 pressure to which it is subjected, the 

 black heap begins to swell and en- 

 large, until it attains nearly double 

 its former size. 



Chimney Swallow is the name 

 usually applied to this Swift. The 

 habit of frequenting chimneys is a 

 recent one, and the substitution of 

 this modern artificial home for hollow 

 trees illustrates the readiness with 

 which it adapts itself to a change in 

 surroundings. In perching, they 

 cling to the side of the chimney, using 

 the spine-pointed tails for a support. 

 They are most active early in the 

 morning and late in the afternoon, 

 when one may hear their rolling 

 twitter as they course about over- 

 head. 



The question whether Chimney 

 Swifts break off twigs for their nests 

 with their feet is now being discussed 

 by ornithologists. Many curious and 

 interesting observations have been 

 made, and the momentous question 

 will no doubt in time be placed be- 

 yond peradventure. 



133 



