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  • Home
  • APAL
    • A-PAL History >
      • A-PAL Humane Society Leadership Team
      • APAL Leadership Opportunities
    • APAL Programs >
      • The Rusty Fund >
        • Rusty's Pet Tails
      • Save the Kittens
      • Spay or Neuter
      • Second Chance K9
      • Community Cats >
        • Understanding Feral Cats
        • How to Trap a Feral Cat
      • Special Needs >
        • Special Needs Stories
      • Adopt a Friend
      • Trap-Neuter-Return
      • APAL Tracking Our Progress
    • Support A-PAL >
      • Volunteer for APAL
      • Foster for A-Pal >
        • Foster Forms >
          • Foster Program Protocol
          • Kitten Health Checklist
          • Kitten Growth Chart
          • Guide to Feline URI
      • Donate to A-PAL >
        • Donate your Car
      • A-PAL Wish List
      • A-PAL Facility Sponsor
    • Partners >
      • Shelter Partners >
        • Dec14News-PitBulls
        • Jan15News-Excel
        • Feb15News-BenefitsOfPets
        • Feb15News-HarmfulAlgaeBlooms
        • Mar15News-Hoarding
        • Apr15News-TNR
        • Sep15News-QAMargeB
        • Oct15News-ButteFire
        • Oct15News-Bats
        • Dec15News-Tips4Treats
        • Jan16-Volunteer
        • Apr16-TNR
        • July16News-Center
        • Sep16News-ACART
        • Nov17News-ServiceDogs
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    • Find an animal in need? >
      • Audio Wildlife Tips
      • Contact TCWC
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      • TCWC Leadership Team
      • TCWC Leadership Opportunities
    • Wildlife Programs >
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        • TCWC Education Events >
          • TCWC Education Animals
        • WildlifeSavesUs
        • Living Wildlife Friendly >
          • To Tree Or Not To Tree
          • Save the Bees
          • Holiday Decorations
          • Kill That Lawn
          • Songbird Concert Tips
          • Holiday Trash
          • Alert Your Birds
          • Water to Help the Critters!
          • Bread is for Sandwiches
          • No Dogs Allowed
          • Repurpose to Feed the Birds
          • GoNative
          • Netting It Out
          • Balloons
          • E-Waste
          • Organic Food
          • AllThatGlitters
          • Fly Strips and Glue Traps
          • Toxic Household Products
          • Recycling Pumpkins
          • Tree Trimming Tips
          • Saving Venomous Species
          • Think Biodegradeable
        • Nuisance Wildlife >
          • Nuisance-SayNoToTrapping
          • Foxlights
          • Wildproof Your Home
        • Gold Country Critters
        • Keep Them Wild and Free
        • TCWC Videos
        • Points to Ponder
      • TCWC-Tracking Our Progress >
        • TCWC 2016 Impact Report
        • TCWC 2017 Impact Report
        • TCWC 2018 Impact Report
        • TCWC 2019 Impact Report
        • TCWC 2020 Impact Report
      • TCWC Patients >
        • Success Stories >
          • 1 - Opossum Call
          • 2 - Raccoon Behind the Grill!
          • 3 - Saving a Raven
          • LongTripHome
          • Anita's Bird Comes Home
          • College the Wild Way
          • Releases
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March 2018 - the Barn Swallow

Pictureimage courtesy of Frank R. Perez

The barn swallow is the most common and widely found swallow in the world. The Northern Hemisphere is their breeding territory and they migrate to the Southern Hemisphere for the winter. They can be found from sea level up to 10,000 feet elevation.



Barn swallows are about sparrow size with big shoulders and long tapering wings. Their colors are striking: beautiful cobalt blue wings and back with tawny colors underneath. Their deeply forked tail is the distinguishing identifier of a barn swallow. That forked tail, according to legend, is due to a deity angry when the swallow stole fire from the gods and brought it to the people. The god threw a fire-brand at the swallow which singed away the middle tail feathers.

They feed mostly on the wing and swoop low over water, meadow, parks or ballfields looking for insects. They eat all types of flies as well as beetles, wasps, ants, butterflies, and moths. Barn swallows prefer larger insects rather than feasting on lots of small bugs. Grit and small pebbles, or eggshells may help them digest their meal or add calcium to their diet. Barn swallows don’t even stop flying to drink. It’s just a quick dip down to the water to take a mouthful and quench their thirst.

Barn swallows are picky about nest locations checking out several sites before deciding on the final location. They build cup-shaped nests on structures, like barns, or bridges, or stables. Before man-made structures were available, barn swallows built their nests in caves. The only site of cave nesting barn swallows that remains is on the Channel Islands off our coast.

Both sexes help build the nest of mud mixed with grass stems. They start by building a shelf and then the sides. When built against a vertical service, the nest will be semi-circular. But if built on top of a horizontal service, they will build a perfect cup. The cup is lined with grass and then soft feathers. If they re-use a nest, they clean it out first and add fresh mud to the rim.

Males vigorously defend the territory around the nest. They will chase other males, grab them with their feet and tumble to the ground. Barn swallows also mob hawks, gull or grackles that approach nests.

To attract them to your yard, put out ground up egg shells or oyster shells. If you have an old out building not used for other purposes and you have a ready source of mud, an open door may invite them inside to build a nest. Watch your mud puddles for barn swallow activity. They will pick up mud and grass to use for nesting material. A nest box may also attract them but put it up well before nesting season begins in spring.

Fishing line picked up by accident for nesting material can entangle adults or young. Please properly dispose of fishing line, twine and other stringy material to protect these and other birds.

The barn swallow sparked a movement. Their gorgeous cobalt blue feathers were used in the millinery trade. George Bird Grinnell’s 1886 Forest and Stream article condemning of the loss of these birds to decorate hats led to the founding of the first Audubon Society.
The oldest barn swallow was found in North America was at least 10 years old. It was found and re-released in Maryland during a banding operation. 

Learn More!
Wikipedia
Audubon
Cornell

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