May, 1885.] 



AND OOLOGIST. 



71 



Swallows. 



BY C. O. TRACY, TAFTSVILLE, VT. 



Their wide distribution, insectivorous and social 

 habits, and graceful flight, make the swallows 

 general favorites. The following species occur at 

 this place : 



Barn Swallow, {Hirtiinh erythrogastni). 

 Abundant Summer resident. Arrives from April 

 25th to May 4th. Breeds, making its nest 

 against rafters in barns and other outbuildings. 

 Among our birds no species occupy a stronger 

 place in my admiration than the Barn Swallow. 

 Long before tastes which developed later had 

 manifested an existence, the " Fork-tailed Swal- 

 low " was a well known object to my youthful 

 eye. Later iu life as 1 drove the mowing ma- 

 chine and hay tedder, scores of thtm were my 

 companions, circling about me hour after hour, 

 catching with an ease and precision that ever 

 called forth my detptst admiration, the toimtlcts 

 insects which the machine disturbed from their 

 retreat in the grass. Another feature of this swal- 

 low which always pleased me was their prompt- 

 ness in the field upon such occasions. ]So wait- 

 ing for them until the work was half comi)leted, 

 they were there at the start be it morning, noon, 

 or evening, and ollen have they followed me un- 

 til darkness closed around us. Once 1 saw a man 

 set his dog upon a neighbor's hens that had gone 

 upon his newly sown grain field. One was soon 

 nearly stripped of her feathers, when almost in- 

 stantly a colony of Barn Swallows which were 

 repaiiing their previously occupied nests in an 

 old barn one-lourth of a mile away, ajjpeared on 

 the scene and in a wonderfully short lime eariied 

 the feathers to their nests. 



Cuff Swallow, (Petroc/ididoii liuiifroiix). 

 Abundant bummer resident. Arrives from May 

 a to H. Breeds, nests beneath the eaves of barns. 

 It is no uncommon thing to see a hundred or 

 more of the gourd-shaped mud nests of this spe- 

 cies beneath the eaves of one barn. The nests 

 are repaired and used lor many years in succes- 

 sion If not disturbed. A few ignorant farmers 

 destroy them as they do not want the Swallows 

 around their barns, but usually they are pro- 

 tected. This s-pecies associates closely with the 

 preceding, being equally industrious and social, 

 and much more abundant. For a few weeks be- 

 fore their departure lor the South, large numbers 

 of Barn and Clitf Swallows frequently alight upon 

 the telegraph and telephone wires, especially dur- 

 ing damp and rainy weather, hundreds of them 

 often being on the wire at once. 



Bank Swallow, [Cotile riparui). Abundant 

 Summer resident. Arrives from May 5 to 10. 

 Breeds, often in large colonies along the streams, 

 where they make an excavation, two or three feet 

 horizontally into the sandy bank. A few dry 

 grasses and feathers constitute the nest. This 

 species is often seen with the two preceding, but 

 does not, like them, seek the company of man. 



White-bellied Swallow, (Tachycinetn bi- 

 eolor). Rare Summer resident. Arrives the last 

 of April. Breeds, nesting in holes in trees. 



Purple Martin, {Progm suhis). Rare Sum- 

 mer resident, quite local. Arrives May 1 to 8. 

 Breeds, nesting in boxes made for their use. 



In connection with the Swallows may be men- 

 tioned the 



Chimney Swift, Cha-tum pdusgica). Abun- 

 dant Summer resident. Arrives May 1 to 8. 

 Breeds, nests in chimneys. The nest is a curious 

 affair made of twigs cemented together with sa- 

 liva, by which it is also attached to the chimney. 

 A very active and industrious species, destroying 

 large numbers of insects, and easily distinguished 

 from the other Swallows by its sooty-brown 

 color, short tail, short quick stroke of the wings, 

 and rapid flight. In March, 1884, fire consumed 

 a dwelling house near here in which was a chim- 

 ney that had been occupied for many years dur- 

 ing the breeding season by several pairs of Swifts. 

 Before their return that season, a new house with 

 an entirely different arrangement of chimneys 

 had been erected in place of the one burned. June 

 13, I was upon the roof of the new house and was 

 much interested in the movements of about a 

 hundred Swifts which were in the vicinity. Al- 

 most continuously a few of them would fly about 

 the chimneys giving them a critical examination, 

 then favoring me with an equally close inspec- 

 tion, fly away. These peculiar movements were 

 continued for about one-half hour, when the en- 

 tire flock passed out of sight. Returning again in 

 two hours they repeated their ))revious actions. 



In the town of Woodstock is a woolen mill 

 which has been idle for several years. Connected 

 with the mill is an immense chimney in which 

 countless numbers of Swifts find a home during 

 their sojourn here, and rear their young. Oood 

 judges say there are thousands of them. This 

 number does not seem to me an exaggeration, for 

 I have seen them when they, literally, poured out, 

 and again poured in, lairly making a cloud about 

 the top of the chimney. It was a most interest- 

 ing sight. 



By the last week in August, the Swifts, and 

 different species of Swallows, have departed for 

 the South. 



