TREE SWALLOWS

Tree Swallows are a member of the Swallow family and cousin to the Purple Martin, often being mistaken as a Martin to the untrained eye. If you have ever had a Bluebird trail or plan to have one, depending on where you live, you will most likely run into this species. Tree Swallows are a native bird who also compete for Bluebird housing. They eat live flying insects and are an absolute joy to have around. Tree Swallows can live side by side to the Bluebird in paired cavities, although it has been my experience that they prefer gourds to the wood boxes. In either situation this bird is acrobatic, beautiful, friendly & at times feisty. The Bluebirds and Tree Swallows will certainly squabble at first, and from time to time, but together can work as a great team against predators. I enjoy these birds most when the lawn is being mowed and you can see a handful of them zig-zagging behind the mower, gobbling up the disturbed bugs. You may also see their cousin, the Barn Swallow, doing the same. Because the swallows eat many unwanted bugs, they are very beneficial to have around.

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* These Pictures Have Sound*

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 


TREE SWALLOW NEST CYCLE
INCUBATION
14 to 15 Days
FLEDGE NEST
16 to 30 Days
ONE BROOD PER SEASON



Fun With Tree Swallows

Tree Swallows can't resist feathers!! Just look at their nests to see why.
They use many of them in different shapes and sizes. If you can get
a hold of  some (maybe an old Goose down pillow?) you can enjoy
watching them come out of nowhere, gobbling them up as you let
them go into the air. Choose a spot close to their chosen box, wait till
they are around and get ready to watch the show! I had a ball !!



    TREE SWALLOW VIDEO     

I have made a small 2 minute & 34 second movie clip of my Tree Swallows taking my feather offerings for their nests. This is the edited version of the original which was allot longer and a much larger file. They move pretty fast as you will see and are very comical. There was a decent wind this day but the Tree Swallows seemed to manage. I recommend the larger video clip as the image is larger and easier to see. If you have a slow connection, this is well worth the wait. Turn your sound up & enjoy!

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your computer  to view these video clips. *


This video clip is recommended for those who have a slow Internet connection speed, such as dial up.  This download file size is 806 KB

This video clip is recommended for those with a faster Internet connection speed, such as cable or DSL. This download file
size is  2.83 MB



*TREE SWALLOW INFORMATION LINKS*