262 BIRDS OF NORTH CAROLINA 



fall from early August to mid-October. In the tidewater section it has thrice been 

 recorded in winter, namely, below New Bern in January, 1885, by H. H. Brimley; 

 at Fort Macon by Coues in January, February, and March, 1870, and at Lake 

 Ellis, Craven County, November 6-13, 1910, observed to be common by H. H. Brim- 

 ley. We have no summer records for it, but Pearson found the species common at 

 Cape Hatteras on April 19, 1898; and saw several birds looking into holes of dead 

 trees on the shores of Lake Mattamuskeet on April 16, 1898. 



FIG. 210. TREE SWALLOW. 



The Tree Swallows nest in holes in dead trees, usually in the neighborhood of 

 water; in fact, these birds are seldom seen far from it. On the coast of Maine, 

 Pearson has found them nesting commonly in boxes on poles erected by lobster men. 

 The nest is lined with grass and similar material, with an inside layer of feathers, 

 in which comfortable bed five to seven pure white eggs are laid. The nesting season 

 is said to be from May to July, but in this latitude we can doubtless omit the latter 

 month from our calculations. They are known to breed near Cape Charles, Vir- 

 ginia. 



Genus Riparia (Forst) 



259. Riparia riparia (Linn.}. BANK SWALLOW. 



Description: Ads. Upperparts brownish gray; throat white; a brownish-gray band on the 

 breast; outer vane of first primary without recurved booklets; a small tuft of feathers above the 

 hindtoe. L., 5.20; W., 3.95; T., 2.00; B. from N., .18. (Chap., Birds of E. N. A.) 



Range. Northern hemisphere; in America wintering in West Indies, South and Central America. 



Range in North Carolina. Rare migrant throughout the State. 



The Bank Swallow has been recorded in this State as a migrant at Fort Macon 

 (Coues, 1870); a rare transient in Buncombe County (Cairns, 1891); and as com- 

 mon along the Tuckaseegee River, near Dillsboro, in May, 1888 (W. A. and J. A. 

 Jeffries). The only other records come from the two specimens taken by H. H. 

 and C. S. Brimley at Raleigh on April 24, 1888, and on August 8, 1896. 



In feeding and nesting habits this bird closely resembles the Rough-winged Swal- 

 low, which seems largely to replace it in the Southeastern States. Both birds are 

 called "Bank Swallow" by casual observers. 



