More Swallows

After a late start to the breeding season my local Swallows seem to be doing well although breeding success seems to vary from farm to farm. One farm has a livery stables and here the Swallows are already sitting on 3rd clutches. On another the 2nd broods have only just hatched and the brood sizes are generally smaller. Yet this is a dairy farm with old out buildings that would have a seemingly inexhaustible supply of flies!

In between weddings & trips out with our daughters, son in law & grandaughter I've managed to get out in the evenings and ring a few more broods. The 3 sites have currently yielded nearly 60 youngsters with one site ( the livery stables) accounting for 25 from 4 pairs of that total with more to come! The dairy farm, however has struggled with 3 pairs fledging 10 young.

We've also gad a Wrens nest in the garden. It's in the unusual position of being in the top a beech hedge no more than 3 m from the kitchen window. I knew nothing about it until we heard the young and watched from the window as four youngsters fledged and left the nest for the first time.