MARTINS. 267 



heard, the bird is nine times out of ten seen sitting on a 

 roof, tree, or other perching place. The song is low, 

 sweet, and varied, but not so rich as that of the Swallow. 

 When the Martin is at rest on the roofs of buildings it 

 is amusing to see the awkward attempts to progress by 

 the feet alone. They will move for a few inches with a 

 rolling kind of motion, but the observer will find that 

 their wings assist them even in this small attempt at a 

 movement nature has not intended them to put forth. 



The Martin, like all other members of this family, 

 pairs for life, and thus we see the little wanderers, -soon 

 after their arrival, alighting on their old mud-built nests, 

 or if they have been destroyed while the birds were 

 absent, the little creatures with wonderful instinct cling 

 to the site of their former home, and as the time ap- 

 proaches when they are called upon to propagate their 

 species, a new nest is built in the same position. Unlike 

 its congeners, the Swallow and Sand Martin, the House 

 Martin builds its nest in the open air, where every 

 passer-by can see it. We will suppose a pair of Martins 

 are about to commence nest-building, and having chosen 

 the site, which is either on the rocks, under the eaves of 

 buildings, or the sides of windows or chimneys, the little 

 builders with small pieces of soft mud commence the 

 outside of their nest. If the Martins built too much of 

 their nest at a time, it would only drop to the ground, 

 and all their labour be in vain. But with an instinct we 

 cannot help admiring, they allow one portion to harden 

 before building further : layer succeeds layer as we see 

 them clinging to their nest, moulding and shaping the 

 materials, until the outside part is completed, leaving a 

 small hole at the top for the entrance of the birds. This 

 nest of mud is lined with dry grass and feathers, and 

 when completed is a very warm and comfortable nest 



