common, but in many districts unknown. The Rev. S. B. Fairbank met with it near
Satara. Mr. Vidal killed a specimen at Dliamapur in the South Konkan on the 12th of
Fchruary, 1880, and in the Ilume collection is a single bird from Coimbatore, shot by
Air. R. II. P. Carter in August.
Mr. Ilume has the following account of the nesting of the species in his ‘ Nests and
liggs of Indian Birds ’ :—
“ Tliey breed, accox*ding to my experience, from February to April and again in July
and August; they build a small, more or less retort-siiaped mud nest, in clusters of from
20 to 200, packed as closely as possible, so that a section parallel to the wall or cliff face
against which a colony has established itself, and about four inches away from the wall,
would present an appearance much like that of a lioueycoinb, though the cells would be
less I’egular. Tlie tubular mouths, from two to five iuclies long, all point , outwards, but
tliose of the exterior nests of the cluster are generally turned somewhat. The chambers
vary a good deal in size, but average from four inches in diameter. Tlieir nests are to
he found equally in the wildest and most desolate, and again, as at the Kotvvalee in
Behra and the city gate at Ajmere, in tlie most thronged and trequented localities.
“ The nests are well lined with feathers, aud I reniember more than once that when
robbing these nests, numbers of feathers were carried away with the wind, all of which
the little Swallows industriously captured in their mouths, but at last not knowing what
to do with them, the men being still at work at the nests, apparently reluctantly let
them fly.”
“ Air. R. Thompson says:—‘ I found large numbers of this Swallow breeding in the
Central Provinces, especially ahout the fine arched bridges on tho Great Northern and
Deccan road.’
“ Air. F. R. Blewitt enquires
“ ‘ Does tliis bird breed twice in the year ? I ask the question for the following
reason. Though I have occasionally seen this Swallow in other localities, yet only at
Talbeliut have I fouud the nest. On the side wall of a Hindoo place of worship facing
the main road of the city there are clustered closely together aliove one hundred of these
retort-shaped nests. When I passed there in the latter end of April, the birds, a perfect
colony of them, were breeding. Owing to the strong prejudice of the people, who would
not permit the nests to be robbed, I with difficulty secured four eggs. Again in the
same nests, the birds were fouud breeding in August, and some twenty eggs obtained.
I'our appears to be tbe regular number of eggs.’ ” “ So far as I can judge,” adds Air.
Hume, "three is the normal number; I have opened a very largo number of nests,
and only twice or thrice found more than three eggs.”
“ The eggs of this species vary much in size, shape, and colour. Typically, they are
a long oval, a good deal pointed towards one end, but .some arc fairly perfect ovals, wliilc
others are pyriform, and hero and there a nearly cylindrical variety is obscrvaiilc. They
are smaller, as a rule, than those of L . erythropygia, and more glossy, resembling in tliese
respects those of R.fiUfera. The ground-colour in all is white, a good deal tinged, when
fresh and unblown, with pale salmon-colour, due to the partial transparency of the
delicate shell. About half are pure and spotless white, the rest are more or less streaked,
mottled, speckled, or clouded with pale yellowish, or somewhat reddish brown. The
markings are never bold or sharply defined as those of Il.Jilifera so commonly are ; and
though the difference may not be very apparent by the descrijition, iu practice the two
eggs could not well be confounded. As a rule, the markings are more numerous towards
the large end, where they have a tendency to form an ill-defined mottled cap, and iu
many eggs they are almost entirely confined to it.
“ In length the eggs vary from 0-G5 to 0-8 inch, iu breadth from 0-48 to 0'58 inch;
but the average struck from fifty eggs is OwG by O'o3 inch.”
The descriptions are taken from the series of skins in the British Aluseum, and tho
figures from birds sliot by Air. AA'yatt near Etawah.