third twenty-eight; tfeeTourth forty; and in 1822 thfere were seveUty,
and the numberkas^sinee continued'to.iinGrease*’.’,<i
* b jt appeared in> ,-l-$2i2 at Whitehall, on the fifth of June, and de*
parted dn the tWenty-<fifth of July; and; th;ese'are the usual times ©f
its'hmval and-disa^peaiiahhe.-fh -
i «®hte‘afflt^edMtledBird is, like its congeners»* almost; continually ori.
the \ving, and feeds'on flies and other insects* while performing its
aerial ie%olutionsr< Their note is different from thafcof fo^ei^iwlifewsj
add may be well imitated byi rubbing a moistened cork aFoiind in the
ne’ek(of a bottle. The^SpeoifebArrive in the west- from the -south early
in April, and^immediately Ij.eginJto construed their^ymmetrical fltttiij
which are - perfected by their united and, indiuetisLeits effbrts;»“;At the
daWffeofi»dhyjrthe^^m^a.®n«e i-their labours* -by-collecting'the# neogSs
sary mild from thfe borders of the river or ponds .adjacent; and they
persevere in their work until- nehr mid-day, when they relinipdshi it
for sbme hours, and amuse themselves by sporting in the air, pursue
inglinlets;_>&e? Ais »soon as the-nest acquires tbO requisite firmness
it is comjfleted; add? the; female begins to deposit her eggs* which are
Mir in number, white»,5 ispottfed with dusky browns '^ne^h^Sifare
extremelylMfoiabley ‘find will- readily -crumble- j to pieces -are
assembled' m-korfimuhities»?as*f'epf esented in?th^baek-groundiofi>otnf
plate, db. unsettled countries these birds, select a sheltered situation,
undefc a projecting ledge of rock; and, in civilized districts» they
have^nlfe'ady evinced a predilection for the abodes <of man; W
building against the wj£tU's?@fi houses» immediately -under the eaves of
the roof, though they -have not ill the least changed their style -of
architecture.. A West from the latter situation is now before me; it
is hemispherical, five inches wide at its truncated place: of attache
ment to the' wall, from which fit »projedt's six inches, and coiisists
exclusively of a mixture of sand and clay, lined on the inside with
straw and dried grass, negligently * disposed for the reception of the
eggs. f|Fhe whole external surface is roughened by the projection of
the various little pellets of earth which compose its substance. The
entrance is near the top, rounded, projecting and turning downward,
so that the nest may beAcöihpared to a chemist’s retort, flattened on
the side applied to-t^C wall, and with the principal part of the neck
broken off.
So great is the industry of these interesting little architects, that
this massive and?cofhmodrou^sfruoture is sometimes completed in the
course?of three da||%y About the'middle of July, some nests found
near the Rooky Moüntains’ncóntiamed. yoürig ones, while in others the
process o f incubation- had'h o r férmihsited. It is probable that the
Cliff Éte^faja^rear twö mlóoÖs*' idf that region, though in Kentucky
and Ohio, agreeably to Mr. Aupubon, they have but oneyin the year.
During the; first few "days of August they assen^bj^yin flocks, and
after several attempts to commence their migration, they finally succeed
in obtaining a unanimity of ïpüaspos^ and they disappear as
suddenly as they