As the eggs have hatched and at present we have three very healthy and growing chicks, so the parents are working extra hard to feed them. Both parents have accepted the fact that we stand in the porch and more times than not that fella has got a camera in his hand, so I am able to get some really candid shots of the event. So be prepared to be bored with shots of their progress. I am sorry to say all this end of month blog will contain are my Swallow shots, they really have taken over my life. I will remind you this is the first time in living here we have had them nest on our house and so close and at eye level that it has been a real privilege, especially because they are declining in Britain.
16th.
Just to prove we have three. What did concern me when I enlarged this shot was that the parent is feeding a Bee, will that not sting the baby as it goes down?
If you stick yourself out front, you are sure to get the best of the food. “Go steady Mum on my tonsils pushing the food that far in”.
A good parent clearing out the poo, keeping the nest tidy.
21st.
Just five days since the last shots and how they have grown and as you can see from this shot we thought we had three babes, but as you can see we have four.
Having four in that tiny nest means as they are growing it is getting rather crowded in there, that is someone’s wing stretched out on the right of the nest.
Overcrowding can make you miserable as illustrated here.
My biggest concern is as they are growing so fast I might miss them fledge, so am watching them very closely this week.
26th
The parents are working their socks off to keep feeding these babes bringing a real mixture of insects this one has a Crane Fly in its mouth.
This chick in particular is just getting to large for the nest and must fledge soon.
27th
At last eight o’clock this morning big un jumped more than flew onto the window top about a yard from the nest and was calling for support or food from the parents.
One of the parents sat on the guttering opposite the nest trying to persuade the other three to come out and join in the sight of the big wide world.
But much to our annoyance and its parents the biggest bird flew back to the nest.
Thirty minutes later (led by the big un ) all four were out and being fed on the roof. We did not see them as they flew off, we thought for the last time. But eight o’clock at night , as if by magic, they were all back in the nest for their sleep.
29th.
Up and gone by eight o’clock this morning, I wonder if they will be back tonight?
They came home for the night again, maybe this will be the pattern until they migrate.
30th
The end of the month is near and so is my special Swallow blog, sorry to anyone who was not interested in this, but it has been a fascination to be so close and watch every stage of their growth. If I am lucky to witness the mass migration of these birds back to Africa next month, I will try and get a shot of them, I have seen them one day in the past sitting on the power lines and next day all gone, so lets hope I can do it again. This is the last shot I can be certain of getting and it was tonight (having been away all day) of them safely tucked up in their now very small bed ready for a further adventure tomorrow and getting stronger and stronger ready for that epic flight.