. British birds with their nests and eggs . - were afterwardscommon. They must breed, in our opinion, in the crevices of the rocky ravines, otherwise why should theychoose their particular spot, fly constantly in and out of it throughout the day, sometimes remaining there fora long time, screaming loudly the while ? In Tiger Kloof, near Newcastle, Reid found them numerous, and allapparently nesting. One pair kept fl3-ing in and out of a hole in a rock just out of his reach, regardless of hispresence, and appeared to have .voung. This was on the nth ■•)< in X The Swift 5 screecli
. British birds with their nests and eggs . - were afterwardscommon. They must breed, in our opinion, in the crevices of the rocky ravines, otherwise why should theychoose their particular spot, fly constantly in and out of it throughout the day, sometimes remaining there fora long time, screaming loudly the while ? In Tiger Kloof, near Newcastle, Reid found them numerous, and allapparently nesting. One pair kept fl3-ing in and out of a hole in a rock just out of his reach, regardless of hispresence, and appeared to have .voung. This was on the nth ■•)< in X The Swift 5 screecli of Uie passing Swifts is lieard as lliey swiKjp past us in tlitir mad career,and still rings upon our startled ears long after their marvellous powers of flighthave borne them beyond the range of vision. Soon lliey return again, rising andfalling in amorous chase, or wheel in devious circles liigli u]) in the blue vault ofheaven ; revelling apparently in the intensity of the heat and the cessation for atime from parental duties. I have often noticed this habit in the Swifts, of leavingthe church towers and other nesting places about tlie noon-hour, as if to stretchtheir cramped limbs, and seek their fond at a lime when their eggs would leastsuffer from temporary exposure. There is another period, too, when the Swiftalmost invariably appears abroad, though previously perhaps, unseen for air is hot and stifling, and a sudden gloom creeps as it were over the earthand sky. An almost painful stillness is broken onlj by the chirping of theSpar
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, booksubjectbirds, bookyear1896
