THE FEEDING-GROUND OF THE CHIMNEY SWIFT 



THE CHIMNEY SWIFT 



HIMNEY SWIFTS are found in all parts 

 of the globe except the colder portions. 

 There are about seventy-five known 

 species, but of these only four live in North America. 

 The swifts have slim bodies, rather short and com- 

 pact feathers, while, for such small birds, their wings 

 are unusually long and powerful, giving them unrivalled 

 powers of flight. The natural homes and retreats of 

 the swifts were formerly in hollow trees and caves, but 

 these have been gradually abandoned for the chimneys 

 used by civilized man. This adoption of a new home 

 is a marked illustration of the readiness with which 

 a bird may change its nesting place. Whether the 

 home of the swifts is natural or artificial, when nesting 



