Swallows A Fledglings First Flight

is the barn swallow. Having had the blessing from God to watch a mated pair of barn swallows caring for their nest has been a total joy to me. For those of you who have not read my previous writing on this pair of beautiful birds, you are in for a treat herein.

The pair of beautiful barn swallows who built a home on top of the round temperature gauge under the porch of the home I currently reside in and the way they take care of their young has been truly a gift from God. I do not know how many others are given the opportunity to watch this miracle of birth, feeding and first flight.....some of you I know have had this pleasure, but I wish more of the nature lovers and bird watchers could see this first hand.

The adult birds had built a nest from the first mud ball to completion before I arrived, as this is how they build their "home".....picking up bits of mud and constructing a nest which looks like a large cup. After finishing the "structure" as it is their home, they carefully find soft feathers and grass to line it with for the comfort of their young. The female had laid her eggs and all here were waiting for them to hatch....

We knew the eggs had burst and there were tiny ones in the nest, the amount of which was unknown until they grew big enough for us to see their little heads; bald at first with large gaping mouths to accept the food their parents brought to them. It is a total wonder to me how these tiny things have been able to survive the tremendous heat of over 100 degrees with only the juices the adult birds bring.

Watching the grace with which they fly, dipping and weaving through the porch and landing on the nest with the sustaining food which they gather to pop into the little ones mouths; has shown me in the natural world of birds and animals the same measure of care humans are supposed to show their young.

I am not sure how far these beautiful birds have to fly to gather the bugs and such to created the food to feed their babies, but I do know the adults become so hot they land on the ceiling fan on the porch with their wings lifted a bit from their bodies and with mouth open, cool off periodically. The heat makes no difference to them as the pair are making trips- many many trips back and forth to feed their young.

being bald with a pinkish color to the feathered birds we see gracefully flying in the sky, skimming a pool or pond of water to drink. They are now standing to await the food from mom and dad and they look like miniature replicas of their parents.

Yesterday as I was gazing out the window of the house, one stepped up to the edge of the nest and started flapping it's tiny wings. then another of the infants stood beside it and began the same "testing the air". Watching the tiny creatures above the porch, I called the others in the house to see. By the time all arrived at the window, the three little birds were positioned around the nest and we watched as they stretched their wings for the first time. Turning to one of the people standing next to me, I voiced my concern for the little ones s to how they would fly as they would soon take their first leap out into a world unknown to them. Would they fall to the ground? How did this work? (I have never in my life been able to witness this before)

I was told no, they would first make it to the ceiling fan next to the nest and then make several trips back and forth until they were strong enough to leave. The pair of parent birds had raised many young here and the fruits of their labor are still flying around to be seen by all who live here.

In just a few days, they will take their first leap of "bird faith" out into the unknown, following their parents example and become true birds in flight. I am of course paying close attention as there are dogs out there in the yard, and after watching them all this time, I do not want them to fail to reach the ceiling fan and possibly be harassed to a heart attack by what would seem to them to be a monster.

This again, has been a true blessing to watch and though the others living here have witnessed this many times, it is amazing to me....How wonderful our God is....He created all the birds in the sky, the cattle, the horses, all of the living creatures. His most wonderful creation of all my friends is us.

The following link is an amazing video I found online which shows the mother sitting on her eggs and the entire process. This person was fortunate enough to be able to install a web cam ....long clip, but a joy to watch if you like watching birds. You can see inside the nest!

Thank you for reading and Aloha!