Wayne: Birds of South Carolina. 141 



238. Stelgidopteryx serripennls (Aud.). Rough-winged 

 Swallow. 



The type specimen of this swallow was taken near Charleston 

 by Audubon.' The bird is a permanent resident on the coast 

 and breeds abundantly along rivers which are flanked by bluffs 

 as well as in the sand hills on the coast islands. It also breeds 

 in crevices of buildings, and this is the case on Sullivan's Island, 

 where there are no sand hills suitable for excavations. On Jan- 

 uary 26, 1884, I observed large numbers of these swallows on 

 SulUvan's Island, and on December 22, 1894, I shot a specimen 

 near Mount Pleasant, which had been in the neighborhood for 

 over a month, and which had roosted in a barn since November. 

 This specimen was worthy of a permanent record and it was made 

 by the writer in the Auk.^ 



The nest is composed of grass and a few feathers and is placed 

 in a bank near the surface. The tunnel excavated by the birds 

 extends inward from three to six feet. During the prevalence 

 of spring tides the water frequently submerges the holes and the 

 eggs and young are destroyed. In some forward seasons the birds 

 have completed their tunnels and commenced to build nests 

 as early as April 9. The eggs, which vary from four to six in 

 number, are pure white, and measure .75X.53. In my experience 

 but one brood is raised. The young birds do not appear to 

 moult the outer two primaries until they are more than a year 

 old, and hence lack the barbs on the outer primary. 



The birds of this species which winter along the coast, generally, 

 if not invariably, confine themselves to large bodies of water 

 adjacent to wooded lands. 



On the Atlantic coast this species breeds northward to Massa- 

 chusetts. 



FAMILY BOMBYCILLID^: WAXWINGS. 



239. Bombycilla cedrorum Vieill. Waxwing; Cedar Bird. 



The Cedar Bird is a late autumn, winter, and late spring vis- 

 itant. A few birds arrive by the middle of November,^ but they 

 are erratic in their movements and their presence or absence 

 depends upon the crop of berries of the wild orange (Prunus car- 

 oliniana), black gum (Nyssa multiflora), and swamp tupelo {Ny- 



> Birds of America, I, 194. « Xll, 1895, 184. 



' The earliest record of the Charleston Museum for this species is October 12, 1908, 

 when it was observed by Mr. H. R. Sass in his garden in Charleston. — Ed. 



