It's a sure sign of spring with the return of the swallows. I don't know where they go for the winter but I've heard they return to the same nest in the south each year. That makes me happy. They are extended family and as the weather warms at the changing of the seasons I begin to look for my swallow family. I love sitting on the back porch in the mornings watching them weave in and out of the columns catching insects in mid flight. In the evenings it's an aerial ballet with a symphony orchestra just before dark as they are trying to settle into their homes for the night. They chatter away as they flit in and out of the columns, it's such a beautiful performance. The babies have become too big for the nests so they sleep on stone ledges above the arches of the porch as close to their own respective nests as they can get.
This morning I noticed the swallows had all gone hunting. We have five swallow nest on our porch and I have watched 3 generations hatch and leave and it's only the end of June. I looked to the sky for a sign of them cause it's rare that they are all gone at one time. At last one appeared with something rather large and white in it's beak...and then came the others, chasing her. I don't know if it was a game or if the item is in it's mouth was a special insect treat, so I just watched. They performed their aerial ballet chasing the one with the treat for quite a while. At last she dropped her treat as she soared straight up into the air like a rocket. It floated downward, it was a feather. She reversed her direction without pausing and retrieved it, the others following in hot pursuit. Why was this little feather such an item of desire? Was it just a game, something soft to line the nest or is it bird mentality.
I have watched my chickens do something quite similar when one gets a treat and runs to a corner with it. The others chase it continually trying to peck it away and eat it themselves. It's like a game of tag. If it's taken from the first chicken then all the others will chase the one who stole it. So maybe this is just bird mentality!
I love watching these swallows raise their young. I think humans could possibly take a lesson from them. They are the best parents. Mother and father build the nest together in what appears to be pure harmony. I have no idea if they bicker or not but they end up with a perfect little home to raise their young and they stay together for life. The nest is made of little mud pellets and shaped like a bowl that has been glued to the side of the house. They watch over the eggs and the young when they hatch and they both feed the babies until they are ready to fly. Once they are big enough to take flight the whole village seems to turn out for the lesson. They all soar through the air, weaving in and out of the columns in absolute synchrony missing a collision with each other and the columns by a feather. Each bird does a flyby of the nest, chirping as it goes "come on, you can do it". The little hatchlings sit on the edge of the nest flapping their wings chirping "I'm scared, I'm trying" until one gets brave enough to take the leap into mid air. It's so amazing. Sometimes their little wings are just not strong enough and they will land on the ground. The older birds fly down and sit by them, encouraging them to try again before the "black devil"(Shadow) grabs them up in his mouth. A few times I have had to intervene and scoop up the baby before it meets the jaws of death. I will put them in a separate little garden in a pot plant nearby and the village will continue to do flybys encouraging the little one to take to the air. At last it happens and the new pilots are up into the air and immediate experts!
They will follow their parents for days after this with endless flying lessons and "shopping" for food. Swallows generally catch insects in mid flight and they also drink water the same way as they swoop across a pond or water container. The family continues to stay together, hunting and sleeping together for quite sometime. The babies go back to their nest each night and mom and dad continue to bring them food. At some point in time the babies reach the age they can go off alone and build their own home. I have not witnessed that happening, it just happens and soon the nest is full of babies again!
This morning I noticed the swallows had all gone hunting. We have five swallow nest on our porch and I have watched 3 generations hatch and leave and it's only the end of June. I looked to the sky for a sign of them cause it's rare that they are all gone at one time. At last one appeared with something rather large and white in it's beak...and then came the others, chasing her. I don't know if it was a game or if the item is in it's mouth was a special insect treat, so I just watched. They performed their aerial ballet chasing the one with the treat for quite a while. At last she dropped her treat as she soared straight up into the air like a rocket. It floated downward, it was a feather. She reversed her direction without pausing and retrieved it, the others following in hot pursuit. Why was this little feather such an item of desire? Was it just a game, something soft to line the nest or is it bird mentality.
I have watched my chickens do something quite similar when one gets a treat and runs to a corner with it. The others chase it continually trying to peck it away and eat it themselves. It's like a game of tag. If it's taken from the first chicken then all the others will chase the one who stole it. So maybe this is just bird mentality!
I love watching these swallows raise their young. I think humans could possibly take a lesson from them. They are the best parents. Mother and father build the nest together in what appears to be pure harmony. I have no idea if they bicker or not but they end up with a perfect little home to raise their young and they stay together for life. The nest is made of little mud pellets and shaped like a bowl that has been glued to the side of the house. They watch over the eggs and the young when they hatch and they both feed the babies until they are ready to fly. Once they are big enough to take flight the whole village seems to turn out for the lesson. They all soar through the air, weaving in and out of the columns in absolute synchrony missing a collision with each other and the columns by a feather. Each bird does a flyby of the nest, chirping as it goes "come on, you can do it". The little hatchlings sit on the edge of the nest flapping their wings chirping "I'm scared, I'm trying" until one gets brave enough to take the leap into mid air. It's so amazing. Sometimes their little wings are just not strong enough and they will land on the ground. The older birds fly down and sit by them, encouraging them to try again before the "black devil"(Shadow) grabs them up in his mouth. A few times I have had to intervene and scoop up the baby before it meets the jaws of death. I will put them in a separate little garden in a pot plant nearby and the village will continue to do flybys encouraging the little one to take to the air. At last it happens and the new pilots are up into the air and immediate experts!
They will follow their parents for days after this with endless flying lessons and "shopping" for food. Swallows generally catch insects in mid flight and they also drink water the same way as they swoop across a pond or water container. The family continues to stay together, hunting and sleeping together for quite sometime. The babies go back to their nest each night and mom and dad continue to bring them food. At some point in time the babies reach the age they can go off alone and build their own home. I have not witnessed that happening, it just happens and soon the nest is full of babies again!
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