Indian Birds 
perch on trees or wires or on the ground, 
while the latter habitually seat themselves on 
branches of trees and telegraph wires. 
A small bird that dashes with great speed 
through the air, frequently changing its course, 
flying now high up, now just skimming the 
ground, and seeming never to tire, can be noth- 
ing other than a swift or a swallow. By the 
tests given above it is easy to determine 
whether any particular bird is a swift or a 
swallow, but having got thus far it is a 
matter of greater difficulty to determine the 
species. (Illus. F. IT., p. 267; also B. B., p. 35.) 
Twenty-two species of swallow are found 
in India; of these the following are most 
commonly seen : 
86. Cotile sinensis: "The Indian Sand- 
martin. (F. 809), (J. 88), (-I.) 
A tiny swallow, only about two-thirds the 
size of the sparrow. Upper plumage greyish 
brown. Chin and breast greyish white, rest of 
lower plumage white. 
It nests in sandbanks, frequently in company. 
Occurs only in N. India. 
87. Ptyonoprogne concolor: ‘The Dusky Crag- 
martin. (F. 811), (J. 90), (-I.) 
Upper plumage dark brown. Some white 
142 
