BRITISH BIRDS. 259 
THE SWIFT. 
BLACK MARTIN, OR DEVILING. 
(. Hirundo apus > Lin. — Le Martinet noir> Buff.) 
Length near eight inches : Bill black ; eyes ha- 
zel; its general colour is that of a footy black, 
with greenilh reflections ; the throat is white ; the 
wings are long, meafuring, from tip to tip, about 
eighteen inches ; the tail is much forked ; the legs 
are of a dark brown colour, and very fhort ; the 
toes hand two and two on each fide of the foot, and 
confift of two phalanges or joints only, which is a 
conformation peculiar to this bird. The female is 
rather lefs than the male, her plumage inclines 
more to brown, and the white on the throat is lefs 
diftindt. 
The Swift arrives later and departs fooner than 
any of the tribe, from whence it is probable that it 
has a longer journey to take than the others ; it is 
larger, ftronger, and its flight is more rapid than 
any of its kindred tribes, and it has but one brood 
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