71 



SWALLOW TRIBE. 



SWALLOW TRIBE. 



971 



2. Hirundinincr. 



Genera .llinuido, L. (Cecropit, Boie), Proyttt, Boie (ffirundo, Om.) 

 OXyfr, Boi (//irunrfo. L.), Chdidm, Boie (Hinmdo, VieilL) 



The European species of tliia family are the Swift (Cyjaelut Apia, 

 C. mvrariiu, Temm.) ; the White-Bellied or Great Gibraltar Swift 

 (Opar/w MMa, C. Alpinut, Temm.) ; the Rock-Martin (Ifirundo nipet- 

 trii); the Rufous Swallow (Ifirundo rufuia, Temm.); the Chimney 

 Swallow (Ilintndo riutica, Linn.) ; the Martin (Ifirundo urbica, Linn.) ; 

 and the Sand-Martin (Jfirundo rijiaria, Linn.). Of these the first and 

 the three last are British (summer visitors) ; and of the second, three 

 specimens bare been killed, and one found dead in Britain. (Yarrell.) 



. Tarsus thickly feathered; all the our toes directed 

 forwards; the two middle equal ; the bollux, or inner toe, shorter than 

 the exterior; tail forked or even. (Sw.) 



Head and Foot of Common Swift. (Svahuon.) 



C. Apia, the Common Swift, which usually comes to this country 

 from Africa early in May, and leaves us generally by the middle of 

 August, is the Motitardier, Mantelet, Martinet noir ou Grand Martinet of 

 the French ; Rondone, Dini, and Dardano of the Italians ; Ring-Swala 

 of the Swedes ; Thurm Schwalbe of the Germans ; Gier Zwaluw of the 

 Netberlanders ; Screech, Screech Martin, Deviling, Screamer, and 

 Black Martin of the country-people in various parts of Britain ; and 

 Martin Du of the Welsh. 



Belon considers this to be the "Atrovs and KwJ<'AAos, or KmfeAos of 

 Aristotle (' Hist Anim.,' ix. 30); and indeed Aristotle states that it 

 would be difficult to distinguish these Siro8 or nv$f\\oi from Swal- 

 lows (XcAi'SoMi), if it were not that the former bad the leg covered 

 with feathers (tcurtiar). M. Camus however thinks that those zoologists 

 who are of opinion that Aristotle had here the Swifts in view are 

 wrong ; for the latter says (loc. cit) that the birds thus designated by 

 him made long nests of mud, with only just room enough to enter, 

 which, M. Camus remarks, Swifts do not, but House-Martins do ; and 

 therefore be thinks the birds last named are meant. 



In White's 'History of Selbourne' will be found many highly 

 interesting particulars relating to the habits of the Swift, especially 

 with regard to the structure of the nest, its constant use (by the 

 same bird*, as has been proved in some instances) for years in succes- 

 sion, and the treatment of the young by the parents under certain 

 circumstances. Mr. Salmon has verified the fact of their producing 

 three, and sometimes even four eggs, though two appear to be the 

 ordinary number. 



The old quatrain, in the 'Portraits d'Oyseaux,' sums up the qualities 

 of the Swift thus : 



" Le Montardior, on bicn grand Martinet, 

 Kt a voter tre-leger et fort vUte : 

 Mala ur la tern U ne poae, njr giate; 

 Car v eitant, iur pied mobile n'cat." 



The bird appears to spread over Europe In the summer and breed- 

 ing season. They visit Lapland, Norway, Denmark, and Sweden ; in 

 which last country Professor Nillson states that it makes its nest in 

 hollows of trees in the woods. Its eastward range appears to be as 

 for as the mountain-lake Baikal. At Erzerum it has been observed in 

 numbers from May till September. Mr. Yarrell states that he has 

 never seen this species in any collection brought from India. It bos 

 been noted at Madeira, Montagu extends Its southward range in 

 Africa as far as the Cape : Temminck limit* it to the tropics. In our 

 own country it has been remarked that Swifts are less plentiful with 

 us than they formerly were. 



The grnua ffirundo is represented in Britain by three species. 

 [HiKi JMX1D&1 The following is a summary of the characters of 

 tho Martin, or House-Martin (//. urbica) : 



" C* Martinet fait en forme rphcrlque 

 Son nid l foil, qu* lrapoaible cat de mlcnx, 

 Kn I'attachant aux baatlmcnu fort rleox ; 

 Duqucl {'entree eat tatrotctr ct oblique." 



//. 'JcWoi/o, is the Swallow which makes the edible nests that form 

 considerable article of Chinese commerce. Tho species, which is 

 the Lawet of the Javanese, is small It is brown above, and whitish 

 beneath and at the end of the toil, which last is forked. The nests 

 are made of a particular species of Pueut [Avax] which the bird 

 macerate* and bruise* before it employs the material in layers so as 

 to form the whitish gelatinous cup-shaped nest* so highly prized a* 

 delicacies and restorative* by the Chinese when dissolved in their 

 soup*. Bontius, who seems to have thought that the nest was formed 

 of no vegetable material, says of these birds, " ex spuma maria basin 

 copnlorum allucntin, tenaccm quandam materiam colligunt, sive ca 



Balomarum sen oliorum piacium sit semen, ex qua nidos suos tediGcant, 

 in iisque ova ponunt, et pullos cxcludunt." The nest* are affixed to 

 the rocks, and the finest are semi-transparent Coarse or dirty nest* 

 are used for glue, but the good ones are eagerly sought after. "Chinenses 

 ho* nidos e scopulis avulsoa, ingenti quantitate per Indium venale* 

 ferunt, gulosis in summas delicias, qui eos galliuse, sou vervecis decocto 

 dissolutoe, avide devorant, et ostreia, fungis, et cnteris gulffl irrita- 

 mentia, longe anteponunt." This recipe for making the famous birds'- 

 nest soup ends a chapter which begins poetically and pathetically 

 with the following lines : 



"Quid aeopulas, Progne, quid Inhospita llttora nldls 

 Optas, per median hoa gala qoatret aquaal" 



There is another species, II. fueiphaga, the Linchi of the Javanese, 

 about five inches long, nearly an inch shorter than //. oculenla, which 

 has a white abdomen and longer wings in proportion to its size. This 

 species constructs its nests of mosses and lichens connected by the 

 same glutinous substance which composes the edible nest of //. etc*- 

 lenla. Dr. Horsfield, who states this in his 'Systematic Arrange- 

 ment and Description of Birds from the Island of Java ' (' Linn. 

 Trans.,' vol. xiii.), there remarks that the specimens of ff. ucutenta 

 examined by him in _Java and those which he brought home differ 

 from Latham's description in being uniformly of a blackish-colour 

 without a white extremity to the rectrices. Bontius, who gives a 

 rude cut of the nests adhering to the rock, with the birds sitting and 

 approaching, describes his birds, in the chapter ' De nidis hirundinum 

 edulibuB,' above referred to, as ' Aviculjc parvaa discolores, hirundinum 

 specie.' Specimens of ff. ctcnlenta and II. fueiphaga are preserved 

 in the Museum of the East India Company. 



ff. Senegalemii. It i* the Senegal Swallow of authors ; Le Graudo 

 Hirondelle a Ventre Roux de Senegal. Large. Tail forked. Plumage 

 above glossy-block ; sides of the nape and neck, and lower part of 

 the back, rufous ; beneath ferruginous, verging to white on the throat 

 and breast; under wing-coverts and thighs pure white, (Sw.) 



Mr. Swainson, who has given a most characteristic figure of this 

 species in his ' Birds of Western Africa,' observes that this is the 

 largest of the true swallows that he has yet seen, for it measures full 

 eight inches in its total length. " Its structure," says that observing 

 author, " is precisely similar to our common U. rtutica, excepting 

 that the hind toe and claw, which in that bird is of equal length with 

 the shank, is in this a slight degree longer. In the general cast of 

 its colouring it has such a close resemblance to the //. Capentu figured 

 by L Vaillant as an inhabitant of the Cape of Good Hope (' Ois. 

 d Afr.,' 5, pi., 246, fig. 1), that we were at first tempted to believe it 

 was the same, particularly as Le Vaillant forgets to give ua the size 

 of his bird, an omission which all the compilers since his days have 

 perpetuated. It appears however that the Cape species has a small 

 white spot on the inner web of all tbo lateral tail-feathers, excepting 

 that which is elongated, and that the feathers of the vent have a 

 black stripe down the middle of each." In the same volume will be 

 found a description of the small but very beautiful White-Bodied 

 Swallow, //. leucosoma, Sw. 



The species of Hirnndines enumerated by Nuttall, in his interesting 

 ' Manual of the Onithology of the United States and Canada,' are, the 

 Purple Martin (Proyne purpurca, Boie; If. purpurca, Linn.), the Barn- 

 Swallow (H. rufa, Gm. ; If. Americana, AVils.), the Fulvous or Cliff- 

 Swallow (ff. fulva, Vieill. ; II. luntfroni, Say), the White-Bellied 

 Swallow (Chdidon bicoler, Bonap. ; ff. bicolor, VieilL; //. i-iridit, 

 Wils.), the Bank-Swallow or Sand-Martin (Cotylc riparia (?), Boie; 

 II. riparia, Wils.), and the Chimney Swift or Swallow (Cktftura 

 Pclatgia, Steph. ; Cyjuelui Pdatgiui, Temm.; ff. Pclatgia, Linn., 

 Wils.). 



//. purpurea, the Purple Martin. The male is dark bluish glossy 

 purple ; the wings and forked tail are brownish-black. The female 

 and young are bluish-brown, and have the belly whitish. Toil con- 

 siderably forked. Length about 8 inches.' Alar extent 16 inches. 



"This beautiful specie*," says Nuttall, "like many others of the 

 family, seeks out the dwellings of man, associating himself equally 

 with the master and the slave, the colonist and the aboriginal. To 

 him it is indifferent whether his mansion be carved and painted, or 

 humbled into the hospitable shed of the calabash or gourd. Secure 

 of an asylum for his mate and young, while under the protection of 

 man, be twitters forth bis gratitude, and is everywhere welcomed to a 

 home. So eager is he to claim this kind of protection, that sometime* 

 he venture* hostilities with tbo blue birds and domestic pigeons, 

 whom he often force* to abandon their hereditary claims. Satisfied 

 with their reception and success, like so many contented and faithful 

 domestics, they return year after year to the same station." 



The Chimney-Swift, or Swallow, is sooty-brown, and has the chin 

 and line over the eye of a dull whitish. It is about 44 inches in 

 length, but 12 in alar extent. Tho wings extend far beyond tho tail, 

 which is even, and, like that of the rest of the genus, mucronate. 



//. fatciata, Latham, U L'llirondelle h Ceinture Blanche of Buffon, 

 the White-Bellied Swallow of Latham. It i* of a glossy blue-black ; 

 thighs and band on the abdomen snowy. 



Mr. Swainson speaks of this as a very rare bird ; and, according to 

 Buffon, it is sometimes seen perched on floating trees in the rivers of 

 Guyana, Length to the end of the deeply-forked tail about inches. 

 The first quill u longest 



