What Do Swallows Swallow?

Nanaimo, Vancouver Island, Canada

What do swallows swallow?  Bugs and lots of them.  This spring we hosted a couple of barn swallows on our porch.  They are messy as they make a nest out of packed mud pellets and when they poop, it is right below the nest.  The trade off is they eat masses of insects while they are here for the summer.

This couple hatched five youngsters and today they ventured into the skies for the first time.  After some practice runs, they returned to their nest.  The adults had to coax the reluctant fledgling to fly back to the nest.  He eventually made it safely.

As sign of impending fall and winter will be the departure of the swallows.  They journey to South America for the winter.