across the Mediterranean to Africa, and Is believed to go
nearly as for south as the Gape.. Vieillot says it is resident
at Malta all the year round. Major James-Franklin brought'
specimens from India, "which were exhibited^with his* collection
at the Zoological .Society ; and in Nojth America,-
according to the testimony.-of Wilson, Mr. Audubon; and
Dr, Richardson,- this species .is found from hlorida over thg*
United States, and as high as'the 68th parallel, where they
were sëen in the month .of July ; bu-tOhëy are .notvsupposeÜ ■
to produce mdie than one brood in ,a season anywEeie^inorth
of Lake Superior.; .
• The adult birds have the beak dark brown, nearly black ;
the irides hazel ■; the head, neck, back,''vtfing-cbvertS', • rump,
"and upper tail-coverts, uniform! hair-brown, or mouse-brown ;
the quill-feathers of the wing and the tailrfbathers - darker,
brown, almost blackish brawn ; |i |i n ; throat, breast,, belly;
and under tail-coverts,^ipure-white ;; across.^ the; .upper part
of the breast a - band of. hair-brown ; tlègs# fce.es; and claWs*
dark brown, with a~few short buffy white', feathers on the
posterior edge of“ the tarsus, ju st above'the Junction.'df theg
hind toe—
The whole length four inches and three quarters.-^ From
the carpal joint to ' the end of .‘.the, wing four inches.;.; the
wingsy- when'closed, reaching beyond the -end of the^tail,
which is-forked ; the first quill-feather ‘in • the wing dr the
longest ; the others in sueeession diminishing gradually _
Young birds of the year;' before leaving this country,
have the brown feathers of the back and upper tail-coverts,
as also those of the wing-coverts and the tertials, tipped
with buffy white, as shown in the upper figure of the two
representations given at the head of this subject ; the chin
is also buffy white.
White and yellowish white varieties of the Sand-Martin
are occasionally obtained. %
ZrfSE-SSORES.- HIRUND1N1DÆ.
-JMSSTROSTRES,
AMERICAN PU R P L E MARTIN,
‘ P u r p l e ^ WiisbN, AtneiC ©fni vo). i.’-p. 58.
,, ,, ' ,, AuDxJBON,..brn.Biog'. vol.i. p. 115?p].22,
,, ,, ,, NuTM^iMan. vol. i. p. 498.
In thels^ondi tolunie of this History of British Birds,
pages>,'2T4kan<3a 5, I „made mention of the Purple Martin of
fhe American* ornithologists, Wilson, Audubon, and Nuttall,
in consequencef of a ;le tte r received" from Mr. Frederick
Dublin, informing me that a female example of
this species had heeh shot near' Kingston, in the ^County of
Dublin',! which had been sent for dissection to Dr. Scauler a
few hours afterwards, and when preserved was placed in the
Museum of the Royal Dublin Society. ’ 1
■ During the first Week of September 1842, two other examples
of this same species vterei shot by Mr. John Calvert,
of Paddington, at the Kingsbury Reservoir. One of these
specimens was lent me.by F. Bond, Esq.; it is a young bird
of the year, and the outside .tail-feathers are not fully grown
up. From this bird the figure here inserted was taken.