First Swallows Sighted

[Longside4evr]

Had a days fishing yesterday whilst over for the most exciting match this season
And so lots of Swallows coming in on the high pressure by the end of the day they must have been around 30
The sand martins usually arrive first but the swallows have won the race all the way from Africa
I think its bloody marvelous site to see and certainty makes you feel good to be a live
Little things like that can make a difference
So 3 points tomorrow will round a perfect weekend off

Heres a fish I caught yesterday

[Falcon]

One swallow doesn't make a summer, but it does make for a memorable birthday.

[LeadBelly]

In recent years I see (of those migratory aerial acrobat birds) only swifts here; a few years ago there used to be martins as well but Ive not spotted those in recent years. Never seen swallows over where I live now.
I was out for a walk in the sun yesterday and spotted a small bird zooming overhead and thought it was maybe my first swift sighting but it wasnt so I'll maybe have to wait a week or two longer. The numbers vary a lot year to year.
I love to see them on a summer evening wheeling around the sky chasing the insect swarms, it really is a great sight.

[Longside4evr]

In Spain you get swallows pairing up and having there first clutch early March seen them building there nests in February.
The swifts arrive from just across the water at the end of March on the south coast in their thousands still
But in England I have heard their as been a serious decline reasons have been blamed on lack of nesting sites as they liked the old buildings to have their young in
with the new builds today the roof spaces they like to get into are well caped off and the demolition of old buildings have been like cutting there forest down to a respect.

[joey13]

I work out of an old farm building and it never ceases to amaze me they return every year , still waiting for them this year:)

[Bosscat]

My dad cut a hole in the door to the barn attached to our old house.

Was great fun watching the swallows swoop in and out of said hole. This was so we could keep the door shut as we had a Siamese cat who discovered if he went up the ladder onto the loft there was a stone ledge above the door he could snatch the swallows midair. So the ledge was broken off with a sledgehammer. This didn't stop the Cat as he was quite resourceful hence the hole in the door.

When my Mum died we sold the old homestead, and I was up there last autumn and called in for a nosey.

The people we sold the house to showed us the old barn door (Hole still there) and the swallows are still visiting. They love watching them too.

Isn't nature wonderful......

[Carnsmerry12]

The swallows arrived here in Cornwall on Saturday 9th of this month. We only saw 4 over the tiny hamlet of St Winnow. Haven't seen any swifts yet!

[Longside4evr]

nice story Bosscat my Mum and Dad live in the Ribble Valley and it in quite a nice peaceful spot
Some years ago my Brother built them a summer house with an out stretched canter leaver roof my farther trained some clematis and Jasmine to grow around the trellises and a join around the roof eventually.This gave good cover and perfect for the migrating swallows to nest in the eves of the structure these birds work ever so hard to feed and bring up there young returning to the same spot year on year to do it all over again such an incredible journey is there plight its simply is amazing
For a good ten year the two little swallows would find refuge in my Mum and Dads little Summer house.Then a few Summers ago an uneventful thing happened.
This is nature I suppose and you cant change it, one evening as the second clutch of fledgling was about to take there maiden flight a Goshawk had been waiting in the realms of despair for its meal to feed its own.
This elegant bird of the sky came down and very cunningly in its attack had obviously weighing up its options for weeks on hand bushing them little helpless fledglings
As the little swallows humbled up to leave there sanctuary to what they had thought was freedom to join there parents in flight, what they would do is make the flight from the mud built nest and then on to the washing line to get to grips with there next move
Law and behold to them was this majestic bird of pray lye in wait as the first little bird left for the line down came the Goshawk and as quick as out took the first and continued this till it had all five or six with in half hour what had become weeks of pleasure and been finished in a breeze of a Summer
But what was more devastating was that those two parental swallows never returned to nest there again.
Eight years on and another pair have been weighing up there nesting site and flying in and around the garden building but to no avail as of yet, so this year may yet bare fruit again my parent await in anticipation and it really would be nice to see again just a little story and incite into the plight of these truly wonderful birds
One swallow dont make a Summer but a family of them certainly does.
UTC

[spadesclaret]

That is a truly inspiring story, Longside. I'd love to hear that it has a happy ending. You must let us know.

[dougcollins]

Swifts tend to be a good month later. I see then here around 20 May.

[IanMcL]

Sighted.

[Longside4evr]

Thank you for putting it right much obliged

[tim_noone]

Always love catching the first sight of the swallow...

[Longside4evr]

i admit I was never the best at spelling and absolutely loathed being tested at any level
Reading books as never been a thing of mine either but if I am bad now then I have a degree since then

[oswyclaret]

Swifts are the last, from swallows house/sand martins, to arrive from Africa to our shores, and the first to leave for their return journey to Africa.
Did you know, they also 'sleep' on the wing and the only time they land,is at their nest hole!
They have been known to travel up to 200 miles to look for food!!!

[Longside4evr]

Thats absolutely correct amazing species the swallow family in Spain you get loads more types
Alpine swifts other amazing birds so a blue throated robin whilst fishing last week never seen one before just like our robins but blue throat