THE PALM SWIFT. 
45 
Mr. Gosse has described^ under the name of Palm Swift 
[Tachornis plmnicobia) , a curious species indigenous to Ja- 
maica. This bird forms its nest in the hollow spathes of 
the cocoa-nut tree ; in some examined by Mr. Gosse there 
were three or four nests in a spathe, one above another 
and in contact : there was a kind of gallery communicating 
with each. The materials were feathers^ and the silk cottony 
down of the Bomhax, felted so strongly together as to be 
nearly as tenacious as cloth. He subsequently found similar 
nests attached to the plaited surface of the fronds of the 
palmetto ; they were chiefly made of the cotton of the Bom- 
haXy and seemed to be firmly glued to the under surface of 
the leaves^. 
There is a very small species of swallow [CoUocalia ^li- 
dificd) found in various parts of the Indian Archipelago 
which has acquired great celebrity from its nest. With the 
Chinese this nest is an important article of commerce ; the 
chief supply is derived from Java, and^ as the birds build 
generally in caves close to the sea and very difficult of access, 
great danger is often experienced in procuring them. In their 
texture they somewhat resemble isinglass, and are formed from 
a kind of seaweed called ^ agal-agal/ after having been mace- 
* Birds of Jamaica, p. 56. 
