85 



Fig. 31. CHIMNEY SWIFT ON NEST. 



A little blurred because the bird jumped ivhen the light was 

 Hashed on her. 



The chimney was about eigliteen inches in width. Start- 

 ing from the nest, the bird would leap upward, and two 

 strong flaps of the narrow wings would carry him to tlie 

 opposite wall a little more than a foot above where he start- 

 ed ; he just barely touched the side, whirled and two more 

 beats raised him another foot. He only had about fifteen 

 feet to rise before reaching the top and it only took about 

 ten of the rapid side-to-side flights to accomplish it. 



The return to the nest was morfe difficult to watch as the 

 birds came dasliing down with the speed of a bullet, ap- 

 parently not touching the sides at all. Almost before I 

 could see them coming they would have turned and be 

 clinging beside the nest. 



