The Neihart herald. [volume] (Neihart, Mont.) 1890-1901, 1896-11-21
LEI HIS MAZE STARXE.
Traits of California Swifts and Their Nestr
Tn the RarJxs

80" fth 4 cs1NA Atasfa -NFaAE
In the Rocks.
If rarity is an index to interest,
the swifts are entitled to the highest
regard among the rare and interest
ing birds of California. for in addi-
ton to their rarity they are among
the most difficult of the feathered
tribes to capture. This is due to
two causes: First. they inhaibt only
the most inaccessible places in the
rocks, where 1t is almost impossible
for man to get at them, and conse-
quently there Is only little known of
their habits or of their nests and
eggs; second, as their name indi,
oates, they are probably the most
rapid of all birds in their move
ments, having exceedingly long
wings, with sharp edges, enabling
them to fly with the greatest veloci-
ty and at the same time offering the
least resistance to the air. Taken
all in all, they are birds which seem
primarily adapted to powerful flight
and long endurance. This, in one
way, is attested by their legs and
feet, which are exceedingly small
and undeveloped for birds of their
size. the probable explanation being
that through disuse these members
have become smaller and weaker, un-
til now the reduced size of the legs
has become one of tie chief charao.
teristics of the bird. The wings arc
so long that when at rest they al
most at the tips, while the
mouth, like most of the other men,
bers of the tribe, including the night
hawk and goat sucker, is very large
in proportion to the size of the bird,
enabling it to catch insects on the
wing with almost unerring accu-
racy. The bill, like the legs. is very
small, as the methods of procuring
food do not require much use of it,
and it, too, has probably grown
smaller through disuse.
The strangest experience / ever
had with the swifts was last year,
while fishing in the mountains of
San Diego county, where ] came on
q flock of about 20 circling high
overhead. They came nearer and
nearer the ground, until suddenly
darting up the canyon one by one
they disappeared behind a waterfall
which tumbled so feet from an over
hanging rock. On closer examina-
ton | found some of them clinging
to the spray spattered rocks behind
the falls, while others had disap-
peared entirely behind the over
hanging powders. Probably this
rock had earlier in the season shell
tered their nests. After watching
them for half an hour and making
them fly in and out by throwing
stones at them through the falls |
returned to camp, and the next day
came back, this time with my gun.
l waited half an hour without a sign
Of the birds being seen, when sud
denly two skinned out from under
the rock, and going by me like q
fash of lightning disappeared down
the canyon. l sat down and waited
for fully an hour, when one return
ed as fast as it had left, and flying
behind the falls it chung to the face
OF the wet rock. 1t was the work
OF a moment to bring up my gun,
and firing I saw it drop into the pool
below, whore I fished it out with a
stick. And now the strangest thing
of all happened. AS my specimen
was lying IN the top of an immense
granite, bewildered, where I had
placed it to dry, the mate returned,
but no sooner had it flown over
where I was sitting than it futtered
to the ground and fell over backward
into the stream. When | picked it
up, l was perfectly astounded, and
examining it found that it was very
thin, its stomach being entirely
empty, while its mate-the male
had been we'll supplied, having in
its stomach So black tree ants and
three winged beetles. Probably the
mother bird, weak from hunger,
had succumbed to her exertions and
fell fainting in the stream.-San
Francisco Chronicle.