SWIFT. 188 



ing or clambering on perpendicular rocks or walls, &c, liis 

 short feet and four front or forward directed toes and hooked 

 nails are exquisitely adapted ; they enable him not only to 

 remain in such a position for a length of time but even 

 to sleep thus. 



The call-note of the Swift is of two syllables, which can 

 better be imagined than described, when we compare it with 

 the filing or sharpening of a saw. 



In consequence of the impossibility of this bird ever being 

 able to enjoy a perch in a cage, it is very unlikely to become 

 long an inhabitant of one. 



The food of the Swift consists in all sorts of flies, beetles, 

 butterflies, &c. &c, which he takes on the wing, and of which 

 he consumes great numbers. 



The undigested remains of the food which he swallows, 

 are ejected by him in long pellets. 



The breeding-places chosen by the Swifts are, as aforesaid, 

 holes in lofty buildings, trees, rocks, &c, and these are 

 furnished by both the male and female with straw, hay, 

 threads, rags, dead leaves, feathers, &c, which the wind 

 carries in the air, and which have been caught by them 

 and carried to their home ; these different materials are 

 placed together and glued as it were with their sticky saliva, 

 giving them an appearance as if snails had crawled over them, 

 and covered them with their slime. It is hardly correct to 

 give this irregular heap the name of a nest, as the surface 

 is scarcely large enough to prevent the eggs from rolling 

 off, and the young cannot find in it any warmth or softness. 

 The female deposits two or three eggs, of the form and 

 colour represented in our plate, No. 36, on which she sits 

 for sixteen or seventeen days, during which time the male 

 supplies her with food. The young remain long in the 

 nest until quite fledged, and able to provide for themselves. 



These birds often appear highly excited, probably before 



