394 hirundinidjE. 



great numbers of house-martins nests about the tops of the fine old windows of all 

 the stories at three sides of the castle. They were equally common on each of these 

 sides, and picturesquely clustered on the top of each other with the apertures above, 

 below, and in all positions. The three sides on which they were, are the north, south, 

 and west, not one appearing on the east, although it presents every facility that the 

 three others do, in windows, &c. This side only is retired, and forms a boundary 

 to a garden, the gate of which is kept locked. There are doors in the three sides 

 of the castle resorted to by the birds, but no entrance on that they do not occupy. 

 In front, the bustle of an occupied farm-house is superadded. The colour of the nests 

 harmonises well with the lichen-stained sandstone building. 



It has been remarked of this species, that the nest "is closed all around, except a 

 small orifice, usually on the most sheltered side," &c. My observation on the side 

 of the nest chosen for entrance in the north of Ireland, does not accord with this, as 

 in nests closely adjoining, the apertures are on every side. Of nine nests in front of 

 a house before alluded to, the entrances appeared on the north, south, and west sides, 

 the wall against which they were placed occupying the eastern. On this house, — 

 as is not unfrequently the case, — several of these architects had, like certain other 

 bipeds when erecting their habitations, taken advantage of their neighbours' gables, 

 and it may be presumed, for a s imila r reason, — that of being saved trouble and ex- 

 pense of labour: All the nests of the martin that I have particularly noticed here, 

 had, with a single exception, the entrance close to the top. In this instance, 

 although the nest was built against the wall of the house, beneath a projecting roof, 

 the aperture was placed rather above the centre, in the same manner as that in the 

 nest of the wren {^Troglodytes Europceus). The entrances to other nests on the 

 same house, were as usual. 



Although the nest of the poor martin is often, in the north of 

 the island, torn away from the houses of persons who imagine 

 themselves to be possessed of good taste, yet there are others, who, 

 disliking the harsh contrast between its clay-built shed and the 

 snow-white walls of their mansions, are unwilling to disturb the 

 summer wanderer, and for the sake of uniformity, have had its 

 domicile whitewashed at the same time with their own. I first 

 noticed this in the town of Antrim, where, on two houses, several 

 nests thus appeared : their architects flying in and out, evinced 

 their contentment with the change. In Hillsborough, I afterwards 

 observed, that the same practice had been adopted, and without 

 annoyance to the birds. When visiting the old church at 

 Helmsley, Yorkshire, in Oct., 1844, I remarked that the nests of 

 the martin built at the top otthe windows so perfectly harmonised 

 in colour with the venerable lichen-stained structure as almost 

 to escape notice. 



