262 RURAL BIRD LIFE. 



Swallow does not always obtain its food when flying 

 through the air, for I ofttimes see him alight in turnip 

 fields, for the purpose of feeding on the vast quantities 

 of insects that are often found on the leaves of that 

 plant. The bird, however, is not seen to move when on 

 the ground, and when the insect is secured it flies rapidly 

 away. 



A fact common to life-paired and gregarious birds is 

 that the young keep in company with their parents long 

 after they leave the nest, and are fed and tended by 

 them at an age when the young of annual-paired and 

 non-gregarious species are left to forage for themselves. 

 Thus we see Swallows attending their young all the 

 summer and autumn, and leaving us in company. In 

 September, Swallows, though of gregarious habits, join 

 in still larger flocks, and frequent various suitable 

 localities. These Swallow gatherings are a sure sign of 

 the waning year, and afford an interesting sight to the 

 lover of animated nature. To see thousands of these 

 little creatures in company with Martins, sailing over a 

 sheet of water or gliding over the meadows, awakens 

 strange thoughts within us. We know that each of 

 these little songsters, unless accident befall it, has a 

 long and perilous journey to perform. Many probably 

 there are who will never reach the distant shore, but all 

 now are merry and contented. On the tops of the 

 neighbouring trees, or even on the fences, sit dozens of 

 the birds, and upon closer observation we find that the 

 majority are young ones. With quivering wings, and 

 sharp twittering notes, the little creatures await the 

 arrival- of their parents with food. Their little wings 

 are weary, and they therefore depend on the more 

 strong and well-tried pinions of their parents for sus- 

 tenance. And thus the time passes on, yet still numbers 



