BIEDS — IIIRUNDINIDAE HIRUNDO. 
307 
Family IIIRUNDINIDAE. 
Sub-Family HI RUNDININAE. 
Bill triangular, very short and broad, much depressed ; the ridgo much less than half the head ; the gonys two-thirds this 
jength; the gape extending to below the eye. Primaries nine; the first longest, and, with the second, considerably longer 
than the others ; the secondaries and tertials not reaching the middle of the primaries ; the secondaries deeply emarginato 
Wings very long, reaching beyond the commencement of the fork of the tail, which is generally more or less deep. Tarsi 
scutellate, very short, less than the lateral toes, the inner of which is more deeply cleft than the outer. 
The feet of the true swallows follow the general insessorial type in having three anterior toes 
and one posterior, none capable of being moved much from their normal position. This, with the 
much larger and differently shaped bill, as well as the nine primaries, instead of ten, readily 
distinguish them from the Cypselidae. 
Comparative measurements of species. 
filial 
No. 
Hirundo horreorum . 
Mil undo lunifrons.. , 
Hirundo bicolo 
Hirundo thalapsina. 
Colyle serripennis,. 
Cotyle riparia 
Sacramento valley . 
Carlisle, Pa ... 
Petaluma, Cal j S 
Columbia river $ 
Carlisle, Pa | $ 
E. of Riley's Q 
Carlisle, Pa 
5 66 
5.48 
6.25 
5.00 
4.78 
4.52 
5.04 
4.46 
4.75 
7.30 
7.44 
I2.i>5 
19.25 
4.92 
5.00 . 
3.96 
3.98 
4.00 
5.84 
6.04 
5.54 
5.-18 
3.40 
3.66 
Tarsus. Middle 
0.41 0 6S 
0.50 0.64 
.40 ! 0.63 
.46 : 
0.40 j 0.58 
0.44 I 0.62 
0.41 I 0.56 
0.60 j 0.84 
0.58 0.92 
0.28 
0.28 
0.27 
Along Specimen 
gape, measured. 
Dry. . . 
Dry... 
Fresh. 
Dry. . . 
Fresh. 
Dry... 
Dry. .. 
Dry... 
Dry. . . 
Dry... 
Fresh. 
Dry... 
Dry.... 
Fresh. , 
Dry.... 
HIRUNDO, Linnaeus. 
Hirundo, Linn. Syst. Nat. 1735.— Gray, Genera, I, 1845. 
Ch. — Nostrils basal, small, oblong, and covered partly by a membrane. Tail more or less forked ; the outer lateral feather 
sometimes greatly lengthened. Tarsi shorter than the middle to? , and scutellated. Tarsi naked. Toes long, slender, the 
lateral ones unequal. Claws moderate, curved, acute. 
Of this genus there are two well marked sections among the United States species — one with the 
tail excessively forked, owing to the great elongation of the lateral tail feathers; the other with 
the tail nearly square, or but slightly forked. The species will range as follows : 
Hirundo. — Tail excessively forked. 
Steel blue above ; forehead and throat chestnut brown ; belly reddish white...//, horreorum. 
Petrochelidon— Tail nearly even, or moderately forked. 
Tail emarginate. Forehead, throat, and rump reddish brown ; throat with a large black 
spot P, lunifrons. 
Tail moderately forked. Beneath entirely white ; above opaque green ; upper tail coverts 
purple , '. P. thalassina. 
