WHITE-RIBIPED SWIFT. 
Swifts noted fijdng south. 16th Nov., 1911. Lockerbie. Australian Swifts 
flying south to-daj^. 26th Dec., 1911. Saw a great flock of Swifts circling 
over the house a little before sundown. 4th March, 1912. Paira. A large 
flock of Austrahan Swifts noted flying in a southerly direction. 31st March, 
1912. Lockerbie. A large flock of Australian Swifts hawking over the forest 
country all day. 17th April, 1912. Lockerbie. A few Australian Swifts 
hawking over open forest country near the house at sunset.’ ” 
Berney wrote {Emu, Vol. IV., p. 45, 1904) : “ Alwa 3 ?^s more numerous (in 
North Queensland) than their Spine-tailed relative. In 1902 they did not show 
up tiU 2nd Januar}^ while in 1903 they made their first appearance on 
5th November. In both years they left again during the first week in April.” 
In the sixth volume, p. 42, 1906, he added ; “ A summer visitor, arriving about 
the end of September, when circum.stances are very favourable, but as likely 
as not the first representatives will not be seen till November ; the early part 
of April sees them off again. Verily, they are birds of passage — they never 
seem to have time to stop. Attracted by their screaming, you look up to see 
them racing high up overhead ; they are in sight for thirty seconds, and then 
gone again. It is not often they come down low to feed, and I never saw them 
settle.” 
Mr. Tom Carter has given me the following account : “ These birds were 
occasional visitors to Point Cloates in the summer months. The^r were usually 
observed when strong hot winds from the north-east were blowing, and their 
appearance was almost invariably a sign of unsettled weather. Sometimes 
they were seen in immense numbers, notably on April 1st and 2nd in 1898, 
when ceaseless streams of them were flying south from daylight until night. 
Cossack and Roebume (towns of considerable size, situated 250 miles N.E. 
of Point Cloates) were partially destroyed by a hurricane on April 2, 1898. 
On March 6, 1900, great numbers of these birds were also seen at Point Cloates, 
and a hurricane raged there that night. These birds were never observed by 
me in the south-west.” 
Mr. J. P. Rogers’ notes read : “ (Parry’s Creek, North-west Australia). 
Oct. 24, 1908. Some of these birds were flying fairly high, but just within 
gunshot and one specimen was secured. There was only a small flock. A 
large flock of these birds had been noted on September 24, but I could not 
be sure of their identit}^ until I secured the present specimen. Nov. 7. — ^A 
flock passed by m^^ camp at 5 p.m. flying high, and next morning another flock 
passed at 8 a.m. 
Point Torment, North-west Australia, March 22, 1911 : These birds wure 
here in hundreds to-da 3 r, a fall of two inches of rain the night before had brought 
out many flying ants and these birds were hawking for them within a few feet 
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