THE SWIFT. 101 



ed. Their nests were frequently robbed, but the birds seemed to 

 care little for their bereavement, and when the eggs were re- 

 moved, would quietly lay another couple or so. I seldom found 

 more than three eggs in a nest. 



By watching the Swift enter the tunnel leading to its nest, the 

 object of the oddly-formed feet is clearly ascertained. The legs 

 are very short but strongly made, and the toes are all furnished 

 with strong curved claws, and directed forward, so that the bird 

 is unable to clasp a branch with its feet. This structure enables 

 it to scramble through its tunnel with great rapidity, and it is 

 most interesting to see the Swift wheel round in the air with a 

 piercing cry, answered by a little complacent chirrup from its 

 mate within the nest, then dart into the hole as if shot from a 

 bow, closing its wings as it enters the tunnel, and then scramble 

 away with a quick and certain gait that never fails to excite ad- 

 miration. 



The nest itself is a very simple affair. Any soft material seems 

 to suit the Swift, which brings hay, flakes of wool, bits of rag, 

 feathers, paper, string, and many other substances into the bur- 

 row. With these materials it makes a tolerably compact nest, 

 which is generally to be found at a distance of eighteen inches or 

 two feet from the entrance of the burrow. The holes which have 

 been made by rats are mostly used for this purpose, but if the 

 bird can not find a hollow already existing, it is quite capable of 

 forming one for itself, and by dint of pulling out the straws in 

 some weak spot, and pushing aside those which it can not ex- 

 tract, it soon makes a burrow large enough for its purpose. 



