72 
H1BUND0 BICOLOB. 
to enter a new house if it stand a mile or more from those occupied by the colony, therefore 
they are extremely local in their distribution. I know of localities where Martins have bred 
for years, while they could never be induced to remain in another section which was but a mile 
distant, although I erected houses in suitable situations. They frequently appeared there in 
spring, but after examining the place and flying about it for a day or two, invariably returned 
to the old locality. Although fond of any particular spot they may be easily driven from it. 
If a few birds are shot in early spring, upon their arrival, the survivors will disappear and 
cannot be persuaded to reinhabit the house from which they have been expelled, even after the 
lapse of many years. Accidents occurring, which are detrimental to them although not caused 
through the agency of man, appear to produce the same effect. Some years ago the Purple 
Martins, which bred in many boxes in Cambridge, arrived from the south quite early, induced by 
unusually warm weather, and took possession of their respective domiciles, but unfortunately 
the instincts which prompted them to come north so soon were at fault, for they were scarcely 
established in their summer houses when a prolonged cold snap came on and many of the poor 
Martins were frozen to death in their houses. The remainder left at once and there have been 
no birds of this kind found nesting in that section of Cambridge since. 
The Purple Martin is the only Swallow with which I am acquainted, that will readily perch 
on trees which are covered with foliage, alighting amid the leaves after the manner of nearly all 
the passerine birds, but they never hop from twig to twig. The song of the Martin is loud and 
cheerful; in autumn, when they are more generally distributed than at other times, these clear 
notes frequently reach the ear when the birds are almost invisible as they sail high in air with a 
strong and graceful flight. Early in September, these birds migrate south, but do not remain in 
Florida all winter, and not one is to be seen in the state after the first of November. 
HIRUNDO BICOLOR. 
White-bellied Swallow. 
Hirundo bicolor, Vieill., Ois. Am., Sept. 1, 1807, 61. 
DESCRIPTION. 
Sp. Ch. Form, somewhat robust. Size, not large. Upper mandible, considerably curved. Feet, small. Tail, 
but slightly forked. Sternum, with the keel proportionately longer than in the preceding. Tongue, horny and 
triangular, with the end cleft. 
Color. Adult in spring. Above, uniform lustrous greenish-blue, with the wings and tail brownish. Beneath, 
including under tail coverts, pure white. Axillaries and under wing coverts, slaty, the latter mixed with white. The 
sexes are similar, with the exception that perhaps the female is greener above. In winter the tertiaries are tipped 
with white. 
The young males also have the tertiaries tipped with white, besides not being as bright above. 
The young females are smoky-brown above, with a tinge of greenish and a dark band across the breast. 
Nestlings of both sexes are smoky-brown above; white beneath, with a more or less distinct band of dusky across 
the breast; the sides are also tinged with dusky. 
OBSERVATIONS. 
Readily known by the uniform color above and below. Distributed throughout the United States, south into 
Mexico. Winters in the more southern portions. 
DIMENSIONS. 
Average measurements of thirty-two specimens.—Length, 5-85; stretch, 12-45; wing, 4-55; tail, 2-25; bill, -35; 
tarsus, -45. Longest specimen, 6-25; greatest extent of wings, 13-35; longest wing, 4.93; tail, 2-50; bill, -50; tarsus, 
•75. Shortest specimen, 5-10; smallest extent of wings, 12 00; shortest wing, 4-10; tail, 1-80; bill, -25; tarsus, -40. 
DESCRIPTION OF NESTS AND EGGS. 
Nests, placed in holes of trees, bird boxes, etc.; composed of dried grasses and lined with feathers. Varying in 
size with the apartment in which they are placed. 
Eggs, six in number, white in color; form, from a short oval to a long, pointed oval. Dimensions, from -83 x -55 
to -63 x -45. 
