Alabama, ipi8. 25 



SWALLOW-TAILED KITE 



THE swallow-tailed kite is not only one of the most common 

 birds of prey in the South, but also one of the most beneficial. 

 Its head, neck, and lower parts are white, and its back, wings, and 

 tail, a glossy bluish black. The bird is as much at home in the air as 

 a swift or swallow, usually feeding and drinking without alighting. 

 Its ease and grace of movement always command admiration. 



This kite preys upon beetles, wasps, cotton worms, grasshoppers, 

 and dragonflies. It takes also frogs, lizards, and small snakes. The 

 swallow-tailed kite seems to be entirely innocent of preying upon 

 birds or mammals, after the fashion of so many of its raptorial rela- 

 tives, and on the whole is a species worthy of preservation. — W. L. 

 M. in Farmers' Bulletin. 



4^ 0. A 

 THE PURPLE MARTIN 



BIRD beloved by keen-eyed Indians, 

 "Bird that never rests;" 

 Cherished, too, by Southern negroes, 



Who provide them nests, 

 Knowing thus their tiny chickens 



Safe from hawks will be ; 

 Valued, too, by northern farmers. 

 As crows' enemy. 



Martins seek the sheltering houses. 



Placed where insects hum 

 Midst a tangle of sweet blossoms ; 



But if sparrows come, 

 The noisy, selfish, rude intruders 



For those homes will fight, 

 Till the vanquished purple martins 



Take a speedy flight. 



—A. E. B. 



