SWALLOW. De 
Or 
Swallow in a state of nature. When Mr. Young and I were in the 
Dobrudscha we twice had the good fortune to find small colonies of these 
birds, so to speak, wild. In one case the nests were built against the 
perpendicular cliffs under an overhanging ledge of rock, leaving perhaps 
an inch of space all round for the ingress and egress of the bird. In the 
other case the nests were built in exactly similar situations on the roofs of 
caves. In one nest the eggs were nearly hatched, and we watched the 
birds flying in and out, so that no possible doubt as to the species could 
arise. One of the nests was in the occupation of a Sparrow. Several 
other instances of the breeding of the Swallow in cliffs and caves have been 
recorded. Edward made similar observations on the coast of Banffshire ; 
and Ridgway found the American form of the Swallow breeding in 
caves in Nevada, one of the Pacific States, and also mentions that in 
America it often builds against a perpendicular wall if it cannot find a 
suitable horizontal rafter. Other localities are also chosen in England. 
It often breeds in a chimney, -and occasionally down a well or an old mine, 
or under a bridge or a doorway, in all of which situations the nest is 
generally built on the continental model. Dixon has seen its nest in 
buildings on stones projecting from the wall several feet from the roof or 
any other shelter. Blyth records one instance of the Swallow building in 
the hole of a tree about thirty feet from the ground; and Yarrell figures a 
nest built in the fork of the branch of a sycamore tree. To make the nest 
. strong, the Swallow mixes with the mud of which the walls are composed dry 
grass, straw, or hair. The mud-made shell or cup is neatly lined with dry 
grass and a few feathers, generally obtained as the bird flies through the air. 
In shape the nest is very shallow, and, unlike the House-Martin’s, is always 
open, leaving the sitting bird exposed to view. Some nests are much more 
carefully made than others, depending to a great extent on the peculiarities 
of the chosen site. In some cases lttle more than a rim of mud is 
formed, in which the softer materials are placed, whilst in others a perfect 
saucer is formed of mud, straws, and little sticks before the lining is 
put in. 
The Swallow builds a fresh nest every year, generally close to the one of 
the previous year, consequently many old nests may be seen close together. 
The eggs of the Swallow are from four to six in number, and vary con- 
siderably in shape and markings. The ground-colour is always pure 
white, and the markings are rich coffee-brown, violet-grey, and light 
reddish brown; these are usually distributed over the entire surface 
of the egg, but most thickly at the large end. The grey underlying 
markings are far more numerous and larger on some eggs than on 
others. The spots vary considerably in size: on some eggs they are 
small specks, on others large spots and blotches, sometimes confluent on 
the larger end, forming a broad irregular zone. The eggs vary in length 
