424 BRITISH BIEDS. 



fine grasses and feathers, are chiefly placed in sheds and chim- 

 neys and ledges of rock. They feed, both in young and adult 

 stages, upon various insects taken on the wing, especially crane- 

 flies (Tijmhi), moths, gnats, and beetles. Swallows unite in 

 largo flocks prior to migrating in the autumn. Two and even 

 three broods are produced during their stay ; sometimes the last 

 brood does not develop in time to undertake the long migration. 

 Whether these baclcward birds stay all the winter seems a 

 disputed point. They may now and then be seen at Hastings 

 in Xo\ember, and twice I have observed them in December 

 flying about on a warm day. 



The Hour^e-iiiaiiin {Ghelvlon urhica) has a forked tail, but it 

 is not long like the swallow, and the legs are feathered above. 

 This martin generally arrives a little later than the swallow, and 

 leaves in October and November. A few have been seen in 

 December. The nest, of mud, is placed under the eaves of 

 houses, walls, and rocks ; the nest is cup-shaped, with a hole at 

 the top or side. They, like the swallow, feed entirely on 

 insects. Sparrows wage war against them, and often drive 

 numbers away from their nests. 



The Saml-viaiiin (Cofile ripnria) often makes its appearance 

 at the end of March, and commences to leave at the end of 

 August and in September. The genus Cotile has a tuft of 

 feathers only on the leg, just above the hallux. It nests in 

 sandbanks, railway-cuttings, and sand-quarry faces, making a 

 slanting tunnel with a large chamber at the end. On the 

 iloor of this chamber are placed a few pieces of fine grass and 

 feathers, where the bird lays from four to six pure-white eggs. 

 Sand - martins breed in colonies, and are often attacked by 

 sparrows, which they occasionally defeat when large colonies 

 are invaded. Like the two preceding species, insects form the 

 sole food. 



Wagtails and Pipits (AIotaoillid-t.). 



The Motacillidas contain two genera, the Wagtails (Mofacilla) 

 and the Pipits {Aidlius). The bill is nearly straight, slightly 



