344 USEFUL SIBDS. 



Bank Swallow. 



Riparia riparia. 



Length. — A little over five Inches. 



Adult. — Dull mouse-brown above ; white below ; a broad brownish band across 



the breast; tail slightly forked. 

 Nest. — In a hole made by the bird in a sand bank. 

 Eggs. — "White. % 



Season. — April to August or September. 



This bird nests naturally in communities in sand banks 

 along rivers, where the insects which form its food are plen- 

 tiful. It early took advantage of man's habit of digging into 

 the sand, and probably increased in numbers as roads and 

 railroads were cut through the country and sandpits opened. 

 In this State its numbers have now decreased much, owing 

 partly to the digging away of many banks in which it formerly 

 bred, but more to incessant persecution by egg collectors, cats, 

 " English " Sparrows, and other predatory animals. There are 

 many sand banks in eastern Massachusetts formerly occu- 

 pied by these birds which now know them no more. 



The note is a rather harsh twitter. This bird is almost 

 entirely insectivorous, feeding on gnats, flies, grasshoppers, 

 Tortricid moths, and many insects that are injurious to field 

 and meadow grasses. Plant lice and spiders also form a 

 portion of its food. 



Tree Swallow. White-bellied Swallow. White-breasted Swallow. 

 House Swallow. 



Iridoprocne bicolor. 

 Length. — Nearly six inches. 

 Adult Male. — Dark irridescent blue-green above; white below; tail slightly 



notched. 

 Adult Female. — Upper parts usually duller. 



Young. — Upper parts brown; a. faint dusky collar across the upper breast. 

 Nest. — In hollow tree or bird house. 

 Eggs. — White, 

 Season. — April to October. 



When the Tree Swallows left their natural homes in hollow 

 trees to nest in bird houses they probably increased some- 

 what in numbers ; but since the advent of the " English " 

 Sparrow the Tree Swallows have been driven away from 

 many of the bird houses in villages and cities where they 



