THE SWIFTS. 145 



and well forked tail ; in colour it is drab, without any 

 conspicuous markings. 



It is found over a large part of India and in Ceylon, 

 wherever the fan- or toddy-palm grows ; it attaches its 

 nest to the underside of the fronds of this tree, and does 

 not stray far from it ; for a Swift it is not at all a rapid 

 flyer. 



The nest is a small pocket, lodged in a furrow of the 

 leaf, and made of vegetable fluff or small feathers stuck 

 together with saliva. The bird occasionally makes use 

 of the betel-nut palm, and is believed to breed twice in the 

 year. In Northern India the times for breeding are 

 March and July, but in Ceylon from October to April. 

 Like the House-Swift, the Palm-Swift usually lays three 

 eggs. East of India, throughout Burma to Java, is found 

 another species of Palm-Swift (Tachornis infumatus) 

 which is much darker, nearly black above, in fact. It has 

 the same habits as the Indian bird, but in the Naga and 

 Garo Hills frequents native huts, these being thatched 

 with palm-leaves, to which the bird attaches its nest just 

 as if they were on the tree. 



THE NIGHTJARS. 



These birds, often called Goatsuckers from an absurd 

 superstition which was current even among the ancient 

 Greeks and Romans, are easily distinguished from any 

 others. They are birds of fair apparent size, but really 

 very small and light in body, with large flat heads, long 

 wings, and fairly long tails. Their beaks are very small 

 indeed, and their mouths enormous, often with a row of 

 J 1 , GAB 10 



