SWALLOW AND SWALLOW-LIKE BIRDS. 131 



guished easily from any of its family by the conspicwoiis 

 white tract on the lower hack; and when perching, it 

 may be as readily detected by the absence of any breast- 

 band, the under parts being uniformly white. In the 

 late summer the birds congregate with Swallows and 

 Sand-Martins, often in the neighbourhood of streams 

 and open waters, and, sleeping at night in large 

 companies in reed-beds, remain together until in 

 September they ' swarm ' for migration. Arriving 

 in England towards the end of March, the House- 

 Martin, save for stragglers, usually retires by the 

 middle of October. 



SWALLOW — 7i inches ; lacks the white lower back of the 

 House-Martin ; has coloured throat and hlack breast- 

 band ; tail more deeply forked. Call, ' Wheet ! wheet J ' 



SAND-MABTIN — 5 inches ; above wholly brown ; below 

 white, except brown breast-band. Call, a guttural 

 sound. 



SWIFT — 7 inches ; dead black all over, except gray chin, 

 scarcely visible ; wings long and slender. Call, shrill 



SWALLOW.— Plate 59. Length, 7i inches. Fore- 

 head and throat reddish-brown, not readily visible 

 during flight ; head, neck, breast-band, and back glossy 

 blue -black; wings and tail dull black — latter, 

 when spread, showing a fancy white pattern ; outer 

 tail-feathers extended as a long slender fork in 

 male, less extended in female ; under parts white. 

 Summer migrant. 



Eggs. — 4-6, elongated, white, blotched and 

 speckled, some minutely and closely, others more 



