THE WAY TO STUDY BIRDS 



will glide, while the Swallow prefers to inter- 

 sperse its sailing with occasional, slower and 

 usually single wing-beats. 



Old barns are the true home of this species, 

 in the rafters and near the eaves of which it 

 nests. 





4. CHIMNEY SWIFT 



Haunts: Flying about incessantly in the air, 

 from which it only occasionally returns to its 

 home in some chimney. 



Description: Sooty brown, grayer on the 

 under parts. 



Size and Shape: Length 5.4 inches. Tail 

 short, wings long. 



Call : A rapid, evenly uttered twitter. 



Seasonal Abundance: Arrives late in April 

 and is common immediately. 



Remarks: (For difference in appearance 

 from the Barn Swallow see "Remarks" under 

 that species.) Chimney Swifts prior to civili- 

 zation built their nests in hollow trees but now 

 plaster them with the aid of their own mucila- 

 ginous saliva to the inner walls of chimneys. 

 The winter range of this species is unknown, 

 as all the birds gather at the Gulf of Mexico 

 in the fall, suddenly disappear and are not seen 

 again until spring. 



5. CRACKLES 



Haunts: Cultivated lands or coniferous 

 thickets or woods. 



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