442 ORNITOOLOGY. 



confined strictly to wooded districts or to settlements, their distribution 

 being much the same, except that, in the case of wooded localities, the former 

 was most abundant in the river-valleys, Avhile the latter occurred oftenest 

 on the mountains. Among the cotton-woods of the Lower Truckee, near 

 Pyramid Lake, in May, the White-bellied Swallow abounded more than 

 elsewhere, and every knot-hole or other cavity among the trees seemed to 

 have been taken possession of by a pair. They were then engaged in 

 building their nests, and throughout the day would come to the door- 

 }ard of the Reservation-house to i)ick up the feathers, or bits of rag or 

 jiaper, scattered about the ground, after hurriedly seizing which they would 

 fly with the article selected in a direct line to their nests. As tliey sat (»u 

 tlie ground, they were beautiful little birds, and though they squatted sonie- 

 -what awkwardly, on account of the smallness of their feet, they raised their 

 lieads so proudly, and glanced so sharply, yet timidlv, about them, that 

 they seemed graceful in tlieir motions; while each movement caused the 

 sunlight to glance from tlieir burnished backs of lustrous steel-blue, with 

 M-hic-h the snowy white of their breasts contrasted so strikingly. Although 

 the object picked up was most often a feather, it occasionally happened 

 that one would take hold of a string, or a long shred of cloth, perhaps a 

 yard or more in length, in which case, so conspicuous an object was certain 

 to be seized upon by others, as the bearer labored to carry it to his nest, 

 thus becoming the subject of quite a struggle, and much twittering. 



The White-bellied SwalloAv was by no means confined to the wooded 

 liver-valleys, liowcN cr, Ijut it was e([ually abundant among the aspen woods, 

 high up ill the Wahsatch lAIoimtains, at an altitude of 8,000 or U,000 feet; it 

 was also coiiinioii in the Sacramento Valley, but a few feet above sea-level, 

 among the oak trees of the jilaln. Neither is it invariably arboreal, for it 

 seems to have become, in certain localities, more "civilized," like its cousin, 

 the l'ui|)le ^lartiii, and to have taken advantage of the abode of man 

 ill localities where there are no trees to accommodate them. Such was 

 conspicuously the case at C'ar.son City, where they were quite numerou.s, 

 and built their nests under the eaves, liehiiid the weather-boarding, or about 

 the porches of dwelliiias or other buildings, and were quite familiar, 'i'he 

 siieciiiieiis in the c(»lle(tioii were shot on the wing; and when one was 



