Trees, Stars, and Birds 



Finley & Bofilman 



FIG. 195. A barn swallow at its nest. 



Less than ten species of swallows occur in the whole 

 of the United States and British America, but several 

 of these are so widely distributed that five or six species 

 may be seen by almost any person within a few miles of 

 his home, if not on a single farm. 



The barn swallow. In the country the barn swallow 

 is better known than other members of the family. It 

 flies very swiftly and usually quite low, and whether it is 

 perching or flying it may be known by its deeply forked 

 tail. Its throat and chest are a dark bay color ; its back 

 is black, with a steel-blue gloss. It measures about 7 

 inches in length. 



If barns are so constructed that swallows cannot always 

 find an entrance, then openings should be made purposely 

 for them. The nest is a sort of mud basket placed on 



