CATALOGUE OF CANADIAN BIRDS. 549 
banks and in trees. (JVelson.) On several occasions I saw this 
swallow flitting about the buildings at St. Michael during the 
months of August and early September. (Zurner.) 
BREEDING Notes.—The sudden disappearance of a swallow as 
it alighted on a fence was almost startling until I learned that in 
some deep hollow decayed out of the heart of an unsplit rail was 
a very cosy nest of grass and feathers. It was impossible to dis- 
lodge the birds that were sometimes out of arm’s reach, but 
several nests examined the last week in June contained young. 
I have never found this species nesting in such a location before. 
(Dwight.) This species builds its nest generally in holes in trees 
10 to 30 feet from the ground. The nest is made of fine soft 
- grass, well lined with feathers and down. Eggs 5, pure white. 
(G. R. White.) From May to July is the nesting time for this 
species at Scotch Lake, N.B. The nests are placed in hollow 
fence poles or in old woodpecker nests. The nests are beauti- 
fully made of feathers and contain from 3 to6 eggs. When the 
nest is in a hollow pole the sitting bird has a way of spreading 
itself so that only dark feathers show, when a person looks in at 
the nest, so that sometimes a person cannot tell if the bird be on 
the nest or not. (W. A. Moore.) A nest of grass and feathers 
built in a deserted woodpecker’s nest; it may be in any hole in 
tree or fence post around Ottawa where they breed in numbers. 
The four or five eggs are laid in May and June. (Garneau.) 
MUSEUM SPECIMENS. 
Thirteen ; two taken at Ottawa in May, 1888, by Prof. Macoun; 
one taken at -\thabasca Landing, Atha., May 24th, 1888, by Mr. 
J. M. Macoun; two taken at Indian Head, Assa., in May, 1892 ; 
two at Edmonton, Alta., May 1oth, 1897, four at Revelstoke, B.C., 
in May, 1890, one at Agassiz, B.C., May 17th, 1889, and one at 
Port Moody, B.C., April 29th, 1889, all by Mr. Spreadborough. 
Two sets of eggs; one of six taken at Wolfville, N.S., June 5th, 
1894, by Mr. H. Tufts; one set of three eggs taken at Ottawa, by 
Dr. James Fletcher. 
615. Violet-green Swallow. 
Tachycineta thalassina lepida (MEARNS) A.O.U. Comm. 1902. 
Observed only on one occasion, June 26th, 1874, on the upper 
Missouri, near Quaking Ash River. (Coues.) A common species 
