THE SAND MARTIN. 1 89 



passing down the Red Sea, early in November, 

 Mr. Swinhoe saw numerous Sand Martins, which 

 followed the ship for some days, and on arriving 

 at his destination found these birds very com- 

 mon about the marshes at Takoo and before 

 Tientsin in North China. Dr. Leith Adams 

 says^ that Sand Martins build in numbers along 

 the banks of the Indus, and that in consequence 

 in some places the banks are quite riddled with 

 their holes. Hence it will be seen that this 

 delicate little bird enjoys a more extensive range 

 than any other species of the family. 



Before leaving this country in autumn, they 

 assemble in vast flocks, and go through a variety 

 of evolutions on the wing, as if practising for a 

 long flight, alighting from time to time upon the 

 ground, or on willows or reeds by the river-side, 

 to rest. Swallows and Martins do the same, 

 but never congregate — so far as I have observed 

 — in such large numbers.'^ 



1 " Wanderings of a Naturalist in India," p. 49. 



2 See "The Birds of Middlesex," p. 126. 



