190 



BIRDS. 



Swift. 



the birds to cling to perpendicular surfaces ; in others two 

 toes point forward and two behind thus we find some of 

 these birds perching lengthwise. With the exception of 

 the cuckoo (whose song is hallowed by association) they 

 lack tune.] 



i. THE SWIFTS. 



[One regular visitor; one irregular visitor; one rare 

 straggler.] 



Popularly associated with the swallow and martins, the 

 Swift is in reality allied to the group under notice. Appar- 

 ently larger, the swift, uniform black, save for 

 the grey chin, is easily distinguished from these 

 other birds, with which it hawks. Last to arrive, it is also 



the first to leave 

 us for its African 

 winter quarters, 

 and May and Au- 

 gust are the peri- 

 ods of its migra- 

 tions. The shrill 

 note of the swift 

 as it dashes over- 

 head is not easily 

 mistaken for that 

 of any other bird. 

 It is not often 

 seen to alight, 

 though I have 

 caught a few, a very few, in the act of dusting themselves 

 in Kentish lanes, from which, in spite of the length of 

 their wings, they can rise without quite so much difficulty 

 as some chroniclers would have us imagine. The length 

 of wing does not hamper them much in getting clear of 

 the side of a cliff, to which, thanks to the distribution of 

 their toes, they are able to cling firmly, even in a high 



