175 
THE WHITE-BELLIED SWALLOW. 
Hirundo bicolor, Vieill . 
PLATE XLYI. — Male and Female. 
This Swallow often spendst he winter months in the State of Louisiana, 
resorting frequently to the neighbourhood of the marshes that border Lake 
Pontchartrain and Bayou St. John, near the city of New Orleans. At the 
beginning of spring, it spreads widely over the country, and may be 
observed skimming over the streets of our cities, as well as along the 
meadows in their neighbourhood. 
Its flight is easy, continued, and capable of being greatly protracted. It 
is seen sailing, circling, turning, and winding in all directions, during the 
greater part of the day. Like all other Swallows, it feeds on the wing, 
unceasingly pursuing insects of various kinds, and in seizing them pro- 
ducing a snapping noise, which may be heard at some distance. So quar- 
relsome is this Swallow, that it is almost continually fighting with its own 
species. Yet they remain in flocks at all seasons, and many pairs are 
often seen to breed within a short distance of each other. It also attacks 
the House Swallow, and frequently takes possession of its nest. 
It generally prefers the hollow of a tree for its nest, which is of a globular 
form, composed of slender' grasses, and abundantly lined with feathers of 
various kinds. The eggs are from four to six, of a pure white colour, 
strongly tinged with bluish, occasioned by the transparency of the shell, and 
are deposited about the end of May. It breeds twice during the season. 
No sooner have the young of the second brood acquired their full power 
of flight, than parents and offspring assemble in large flocks, and resort 
to the roofs of houses, the tops of decayed trees, or the sandy beaches of 
our rivers, from whence they take their departure for the south. They 
fly in a close body, and thus continue Their journey, until they reach the 
places adapted for their winter residence, when they again, resume by day 
the habits which they exhibit during their summer sojourn in the Middle 
and Northern States, but collect at night and resort to the sedges and tall 
plants of the marshes. 
? This species is found abundantly dispersed over the Rocky Mountains, 
and along- the Columbia river. I have traced it on our Atlantic coast from 
the Texas to Labrador, and Dr. Richardson states that it frequents the 
woody districts of the Fur Countries up to the 68th parallel, but does not 
