SWALLOWS 
385 
tarsus shorter than middle toe 
and claw; upper part 
feathered. Adults: under 
Fig. 474. parts tawny brown , darkest 
on throat; forehead dark 
brown, rest of upper parts glossy 
steel blue ; wings and tail tinged 
with purple and green ; tail feath¬ 
ers —except middle pair—marked 
with large whitish spots. Young : 
fork of tail shorter; upper parts 
paler, under parts duller, brown of 
forehead indistinct or wanting; 
throat and chest light rusty. 
Length: 5.75-7.75, wing 4.60-4.90, 
tail 3.70-4.10, forked in adult male 
for about 1.85-2.10. 
Distribution. — Breeds from the 
Arctic Circle south to southern end 
of Mexican tableland; migrates 
to Central and South America. 
Nest. ■. — A bowl-shaped wall- 
pocket, made of pellets of mud mixed with straws and lined with feathers, 
attached to side or roof of a cave or to timbers in barns or other build¬ 
ings. Eggs: 3 to 5, white, speckled with brown and lavender. 
Food. — Insects, largely flies. 
The long forked tail of the barn swallow gives it a peculiarly 
easy, graceful flight, and one of its favorite feats is to catch the 
insects that accompany a horse and carriage along the road, easily 
circling around and around them as the horse carries the wagon 
along at full swing. 
While the other swallows hunt more habitually in the sky, the 
barn swallow is usually seen beating low over a meadow. When 
resting on a telegraph wire it sings a bright, squeaky little warble. 
Its call-note is given as a soft witt, witt, and its alarm-note, as a 
harsh Vr'r'r, t'r'r’r. 
Though generally associated with barns and meadows, it is often 
found in towns, and along the line of the Canadian Pacific is one of 
the commonest birds seen in the mountain canyons. 
GENUS TACHYCINETA. 
General Characters. — Tail forked for less than length of tarsus ; tarsus 
entirely naked. 
KEY TO SPECIES. 
1. Upper parts metallic steel blue or greenish .... bicolor, p. 385. 
1'. Upper parts green and purple. lepida, p. 386. 
614. Tachycineta bicolor ( Vieill .). White-bellied Swallow: 
Tree Swallow. 
Adult male. — Under parts pure white; upper parts burnished steel blue ; 
