In front of a nest
Swallows nest in the garage and the attic (one nest downstairs on a floor beam, one nest upstairs on a roof beam). They come back every year. Eating our mosquitoes. All day the parents race into the garage to feed hungry offspring. It’s perfect.
I install in front of the lower nest a sound recording system connected to the house and on June 22, 2020, I record for 24 hours the comings and goings of the adults and the competition of the young.
First findings
The work day is long for the barn swallow. This day, the sun rises at 6:11 am and it is gone. The round lasts until 22h10, that is to say a few minutes before the sunset. Result: 15 hours and some of hunting and back and forth to the nests.
In the meantime, the magpie came in the early morning to steal some kibble from the cats’ bowl – and was chased away by the parent swallows because she wouldn’t disdain to peck a baby. For their part, the cats had to agree that one could always count on a fall from the nest, but that apart from that, they were still very elusive birds.
The windscreen makes a perfect station to blow for two minutes. The low end of the wing beats is very nice, the air pressure is incredible for such small surfaces. I’m lucky, those little racing beasts didn’t take it to the toilet.
Incidentally, we have the cycle of the freezer. On the left, through the wide open door of the garage, we can hear the outside.
From 9 to 10
My day starts at 9am: I switch on the recorder.
End of the game
At sunset, get out of the way: go to bed.
To work
Shortly before sunrise, on the hunt!
If anyone wants to listen to the entire 24 hours, just ask.
