572 AVES—SWALLOW...GOATSUCKER. 
THE CHIMNEY SWALLOW! 4 
Is strongly distinguished from the other American swallows, by its figure, 
flight and manners. It is dispersed all over the country wherever there are 
vacant chimneys, that are convenient for their accommodation. In the 
western forests they build in the hollows of ‘large trees. The nest is of sin- 
gular construction, being formed of small twigs, fastened together by a sort 
of glue from two glands in the head. With this glue, which becomes hard, 
the nest is thickly besmeared. It is attached to the side of the wall, and is 
destitute of any soft lining. The young are fed at intervals during the 
night. The noise which the old ones make in passing up and down the 
funnel, has some resemblance to distant thunder. When there are long and 
heavy rains, the nest is sometimes precipitated to the bottom; but the young 
sometimes scramble up the chimneys, clinging like squirrels to the side. In 
this situation they are fed for a week or more. 
This bird is four inches and a half in length, of asooty browncolor. When 
it flies, it utters the sounds trip, trip, trip, tree, tree, in a hurried manner 
When roosting, the thorny extremities with which its tail is furnished are 
thrown in for its support. It is never seen to alight but in hollow trees or 
chimneys; and is always most gay and active in wet and gloomy weather. 
THE GOATSUCKER? 
Is nearly allied to the swallow, both in form and, manners. Like the 
swallow, it is remarkable for the wideness of its gape; like it, it feeds upon 
insects ; like it, collects its food upon the wing; indeed, by some authors, it 
has been termed the nocturnal swallow, for it preys entirely in the night, or 
rather in the dusk of the evening, when the other swallows are retired to 
rest. 
There is only one species known in Europe,’ and this is considerably 
larger than the swallow, being ten inches and a half in length, and in weight 
two ounces and a half. The ground of the plumage is almost black, but it 
is beautifully diversified with ash color and white in different parts; and it 
1 Cypselus pelasgicus, Temm. 
2The genus Caprimulgus, or goatsuckers, so named, from the erroneous notion that 
they sucked the teats of goats, has the bill slightly curved, very sraall, and depressed at 
the base ; mouth extremely wide, nostrils basal, wide, closed by a membrane surmounted 
by feathers; tail round, or forked, of ten feathers ; legs short, the anterior toes united to 
the first joint; middle claw long, and serrated on the edge, but smootl in some of the 
species ; hind toe reversible. 
3 Caprimulgus Europeus, Lin. 
