fi
A ,lu ll fem a le . S im ita r to th e male in colour. To ta l len g th 4-8 inches, culm cn 0-3,o, w in " 4 ta il 1'85
ta r su s 0 - 4 ’ ’
Obs. T h e re does n o t seem to he m u ch v a ria tio n in p lum age in th is species beyond th a t th e shade of
colour on th e b a ck v a rie s be twe en g re en a n d b lu e , a n d th e sha ft-linc s o n th e b re a s t ave more
d is tin c t m some th a n in othci-s j tlie y ap jia rcn tly become o b scured in w in te r, as is th e ca se with
o th e r Swallows o f th is group. Some time s th e s tre ak s on th e rum p a n d u p p e r ta il-co v c rts a re
v ery broad.
A y o u n g bird sh o t by M r. ’W y a tt in th e M ag d a len a Va lley is smoky brown, glossed with d u ll g re en on
th e back a n d w in g -co v e rts ; q u ills a n d ta i l b ro w n ; tb e w h ite ed gings to th e g re a te r coverts arc
a lm o st obsolete, b u t th e w hite o n th e in n e r secondaries is s tro n g ly pronounced.
Hab. S o u th Am e ric a th ro u g h o u t B ra z il and A m a zo n ia to Colombia, E c u a d o r, an d Guiana.
T h is v e ry d istin c t species of Tachycineta ha s a wide d istrib u tio n in South America. I t
in h ab its th e whole of Guiana, h av in g been originally described from Cayenne, while
specimens from Surinam are in th e U.S. Na tional M useum. Mr. H e n ry W h ite ly has sent
i t from B ritish Guiana, viz. from B a rtic a Grove (Sept.) an d Camacusa (June).
W e have n o t found an y instance recorded of its occurrence iu Venezuela, b u t
Air. W y a tt procured i t in Colombia, where it was confined to tiie low country. He
noticed i t on the Alagdalena B iv er and tb e Lak e o f P a tu ria . I n E cuador Buckley
obtained specimens on tb e Copataza Biver.
Air. Edward B a rtle tt m et with tb is species in E a s te rn P e ru , and i t was found by
him on tb e U p p er an d Lower Uc ayali and a t S an ta Cruz. H e fouud i t breedino- in
J u ly and Aug u st. Stolzmann m et with i t a t Yuriiuaguas in Ecb ru ary , aud Air. Haux-
well has procured it a t Pebas in tb e same month.
The White -winged Swallow also appears to in h ab it Bolivia, as d’Orbigny procured
i t in tb e province of AIoxos, an d a Bolivian specimen is in the U.S. National Aluscum.
In Brazil P rin c e Maximilian states th a t b e met with i t bo th on th e coast and in the
interior. I t was found plen tifu lly to tb e southwards, on tb e P arab y b a, on th e Alucuri,
and i t was v e ry common a t Belmonte, Ilheos, &c. N a tte re r m e t with it a t P irah y in
November, and in tb e Ypanem a d istrict in J a n u a ry , F e b ru ary , April, Alay, and November.
AVuchcrer procured specimens n e a r Bahia, and from Pe rnambuco Air. Eorbes writes
“ T his Swallow I found very common iu Recife, wliere i t m ig h t be seen flying about
in n um bers in some o f th e streets, as well as over th e rivers which separate tb e various
p a rts o f th e town. I also observed i t a t Paraliyba, b u t in tb e in te rio r it seems to
disappear.”
Air. Wallace and Air. Layai'd bo th m et with i t n e a r Para.
Prin c e Alaximilian of Neuwied has given tbe following note on th e h abits of the
species as observed by him in Brazil :— “ I t flies low over tb e surface of tb e water
re s tin g on th e branches and small twigs of tb e stumps, which a re uprooted by the
course of th e stre am, and which arc stuck fast in tb e sand in every direction. The cry
is a sho rt ch irru p . I t is co nstantly occupied iu th e p u rsu it of insects, and is freq u en tly
seen in company w ith R iru n d o ruficollis. I found tb e nest iu au old tree-tru n k ,
sp lit by tb e water, and fast buried in th e sand : it was placed a t the end of th e tree
between tbe wood aud tb e b ark , an d consisted of an exposed mass of dry grass and
sta lks mixed with feathers, amongst which were some of th e red plumes of tlie Alacaw
{A ra macao) and tbe green featliers of a Su ru k u á {Troyon). The depth of tbe nest is
very small, and two wliite eggs were found in tbe beginning of October or th e end of
September.”
Air. E . B a rtle tt fo u n d tb e species breeding in th e Ucayali River, l i e writes :—
“ B uilds in boles of dead trees on tbe banks of rivers overhanging the water. The
nest is composed o f fibres of bark, dry grass, and feathers of different kinds of birds, such
as tb e W liite Heron, Roseate Spoonbill, &c. F o u r white eggs are laid in J u ly or
A u g u st.” Tbe eggs a re said to be of about tb e same size as those of th e Common
Alartin of Europe.
Tbe descriptions a re tak en from birds in tb e British Aluse’um, and th e figures iu tbe
P la te , which rep resen t a n old and a young bii’d, th e former from a specimen in tbe
Salvin-Godman collection, and th e la tte r from a bird procured by Air. W y a tt in tbe
Alagdalena Valley.