Juvenile Barn swallow, Hirundo rustica
It's that time of year, when baby barn swallows are out of the nest and zooming around with the adults, catching bugs and generally having fun. Looks that way, anyhow.
It was a good year for them here. I counted 60 on the wires near the pond. I haven't figured out where they nest -- maybe in the neighbor's actual barn. But they definitely like to spend their days here after the babies have fledged.
At first I thought they were begging, but then realized it must have been the gular fluttering that Swamp Things told me about a while back.
Sadly, most of the Google searches concerning Barn swallows that the blog receives are along the lines of "how to get rid of barn swallows". I can't help but wonder why you'd want to! I guess they can be messy if they're nesting over your front door, but...
1) They're not going to be there that long. Eggs hatch in about 14 days and the young fledge about 3 weeks after that. When they're gone from the nest, you can tear it down and put a rubber snake in its place if you don't want them to return the next year.
2) They eat bugs! Lots and lots of bugs!
3) Watching them fly around, swooping and diving in search of insects, is a sure-fire natural blood pressure medicine.
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