BREEDING HABITS OF THE SWIFT. 289 



one could tell, the hind claw in the embryo was opposed to the 

 rest, and not directed forward as in the adult. 



When the young leave the nest one or two are generally 

 killed by striking the walls of the house. Sometimes, but more 

 rarely, an old Swift is picked up stunned, but usually recovers 

 after a time. Starlings often take possession of Swifts' nesting- 

 places, but not without having to fight for them, and sometimes 

 Starling and Swift will come headlong to the ground, grappling 

 one another, in which case the Swift generally gets the worst 

 of it. 



We do not often see Swifts after the third week in August, 

 and, though an occasional straggler may sometimes be seen as 

 late as Sept. 1st, it is quite exceptional, and for the next eight 

 months their dark forms and cheerful screams are absent from 

 our skies. 



