HIRUNDO. 197 



angle caused by the meeting of the wall and the roof. The female 

 keeps inside the nest, and from the continued twittering which 

 she made when visited by the male, I thought at first that the nest 

 contained young ; and it was not until I drove her out that I dis- 

 covered my mistake." 



"Writing from Murree, Colonel C. H. T. Marshall remarks : 

 "This is the House-Swallow of Murree breeds under all the 

 eaves. Lays pure white eggs in June." 



The eggs of this species are similar to those of //. eryifiropygia, 

 except that they are slightly larger. They are long ovals, slightly 

 com]! .ised towards one end, pure white, the shell of exquisite 

 fineness, and somewhat, but not very, glossy. 



In length they vary from 0-8 1 to O89 inch, and in breadth from 

 O55 to 0-6 inch, but the average is 0-85 to 0-55 inch. 



823. Hirundo erythropygia, Sykes. Sykes's Striated Swallow. 



Hirundo daurica, Linn., Jerd. B. Ind. i, p. 160 (part.). 



Lillia erythropygia (Sykes), Hume, Rough Draft N. fy E. no. 80. 



Sykes's Striated Swallow, which is, as a rule, a permanent 

 resident of the plains, breeds, according to my experience, from 

 April to August. 



Typically the nest, which is usually affixed to the under surface 

 of some ledge of rock, or the roof of some cave or building, and 

 which is constructed of fine pellets of mud or clay, consists of a 

 narrow tubular passage, like a white-ant gallery on a large scale, 

 say some 2 inches in diameter, and from 4 to 10 inches in length, 

 terminating in a bulb-like chamber from 4| to 7 inches in diameter 

 externally. These nests have been aptly described as retort-shaped, 

 and I do not think any lengthy description will convey a clearer 

 idea of the typical shape. They are not always, however, of this 

 shape. Indeed (though I am bound to say I cannot agree with 

 him) Mr. F. E. Blewitt, who has probably taken more of their 

 nests than any one else in India, is disposed to believe that the 

 long retort-shaped nests are commonly built as residences, and the 

 less-developed ones as breeding-places. He says : " Eccentric to 

 a degree is this Swallow in the selection of a suitable place for its 

 nest. I have obtained it on the ground, at the base of a rock, 

 having for protection just a small overhanging ledge ; in a hole in 

 any old wall; affixed to the roof-top of a pucka house; to the 

 under ledge of a high rock; the arch of a culvert or bridge, &c. ; 

 but never, though they may occur there, ' in mosques and pagodas ;' 

 and ' twenty and thirty together/ as stated in Jerdon. I have 

 always found the nest single. The form and material of the nest 

 depend mainly on the locality chosen for it. Sometimes a simple 

 collection of feathers answers the purpose, at others, as when 

 attached to a roof-top, ledge of rock, &c., it is more or less dome- 

 shaped, the exterior of fine clay, the inside lined with feathers. 

 The opening for egress and ingress is invariably made above the 



