THE IOWA ORNITHOLOGIST. 



79 



and one-half bushels of seed) 

 not a grain of wheat could we 



find. That Spring- they roosted 

 in great numbers onthe Zumbro 

 River near the mouth of Indian 

 Creek, and in the morning- we 

 would see countless thousands 

 going- from and in the afternoon 

 see them returning- to their roost. 

 R. D. Goss, 



New Sharon, la. 



Notes on The Birds of lo'wa. 



Order PASSERKS. 



Perching Birds. 



Suborder CLAMATORES. 



Songless Perching Eirdsj 



Family HIRUNDINIDAE. 



BARN SWALLOW. 



(Continued from last issue, "i 

 •'Many of them prefer to nest 

 under bridg-es and a team passing 

 over a bridge so tenanted will 

 often be followed for several miles 

 by the swallows which eagerly 

 pursue the small insects about the 

 horses. On June 19. 1890, I took 

 a set of eggs each of which had 

 two or three large blotches of 

 reddish-brown covering nearly 

 the whole surface of the egg'^ (C. 



R. Ball. Lyon, Co.) "Rather 

 rare. Nests inside barns and other 

 buildings. Usually attaches nest 

 to side of rafter. Seems to be 

 g-etting- scarcer each year in this 

 section. Season of 1894, first seen 

 April 22, and last Sept. 11." (H. 

 J. Gidding-s, Jackson Co.) "Abun- 

 dant summer resident. Builds 

 under bridg-es, sometimes on the 

 top of horizontal beams and some- 

 times plastering- the nest to the 

 perpendicular side of beam so 

 tig-htly as almost to defy a knife 

 in its removal. 6-l-l'94, v^ Incuba- 

 tion advanced" (J Eug-ene Law, 

 Dallas Co.) "Appears at the first 

 of May, and begins at once to 

 build. Is often confused with the 

 former species" (W. A. Bryan, 

 Mahaska Co.) "Abundant in 

 Sioux Co. Common summer res- 

 idet in Story Co. The nest of 

 this bird is built of a few straws 

 or g-rass-stems and small lumps 

 of mud, g-athered around wells 

 and sloughs. The nest is placed 

 upon barn rafters, partitions, or 

 other buildings. A pair in nest- 

 ing will frequently start three or 

 more nests close to each other, 

 take turns working at each for a 

 few days, and then selecting one 

 in particular they will finish it, 

 lining it with soft feathers 

 and rear their young. 



The Barn Swallow often builds 

 upon the rafters beneath bridges 

 that are constantly travelled over 

 the nest frequently being directly 

 over the water. After the second 



