6716 



Birds. 



" Freeman's Hall, Jamaica, 

 August 6, 1859. 



" Dear Sir, — In the outset of your preface to 6 The Birds of Jamaica,' 

 you allude especially to the very interesting group of the Hirundines, 

 and as no less than three of our ascertained species were among your 

 own discoveries, I conclude you will be glad of any further particulars 

 respecting them which a residence among these mountains, the summer 

 haunts of the major part, may enable me to giv e. 



" In my first letter I alluded to that very remarkable swift, Acan- 

 thylis collaris(?) and gave such few observations as the previous spring 

 and summer in the lowlands of Westmoreland and the latter months of 

 the year in the mountains of Trelawny enabled me to furnish ; but here 

 my experience strictly accords with yours; their appearance is only 

 very occasional, generally after rain or heavy gales of wind. On 

 my arrival in these mountains, in January, I found them much 

 more common, and during April and May, and since, during the sum- 

 mer, they may be said to be constant, scarcely a day passing when 

 they are not to be seen in great numbers, and fully impressing me 

 with the conviction that they inhabit some of the secluded precipices 

 of the neighbourhood, though I have hitherto been quite unsuccessful 

 in hearing of or discovering their hiding places. I have spoken with 

 some hesitation about their constant appearance, because it would 

 seem these birds use their extraordinary powers of flight to explore 

 large districts in search of food, and do not, like swallows, regularly 

 beat over a circumscribed hunting-ground ; but, in greater or smaller 

 numbers, rarely a day passes when their shrill scream does not here 

 announce their presence. Soon after sunrise they may be seen in 

 small numbers skimming backwards and forwards smoothly over a 

 small space, at no great height, the tips of the long wings depressed 

 much below the plane of the body, evidently busy feeding. As the 

 morning advances a ' wee-wee,' very short, often not more than two 

 syllables, as if interrupted, is heard, when the whole party of six or 

 eight perhaps collect and dash furiously down the valleys, or round 

 prominent objects near. They are gradually joined by more such 

 parties, when the whole, consisting of from fifty to a hundred birds (in 

 heavy weather more) collect and form a gyrating column, produced by 

 the flock revolving at different heights in the same direction and 

 round the same axis. This is not invariably the case; I have often, 

 noticed different parties come up and revolve in different directions 

 round different axes; the effect was thus of course merely that of an 

 eddying cloud. The screaming parties are then constant, from three 



