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Hirundo rustica
A Barn Swallow spotted in the central wetland area at Huntley Meadows Park. This individual is a male, as indicated by its rust-colored breast. "True to their name, they build their cup-shaped mud nests almost exclusively on human-made structures." Source Credit: "All About Birds," Cornell Lab of Ornithology. An experienced birder told me Barn Swallows build their nests under the boardwalk that goes through the wetland area at Huntley Meadows.
Huntley Meadows Park, a 1,425 acre wetland area in Fairfax County, Virginia USA. Related Resource: http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/parks/huntl...
Copyright © 2012 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved. www.wsanford.com
Spotted on Jun 6, 2012
Submitted on Jun 8, 2012
9 Comments
Wow, that's wild Walter. I've never seen that behaviour in barn swallows, but haven't spent that much time around them. I've only been divebombed by redwinged blackbirds.
Fantastic pictures!
I find these birds stunningly beautiful.
very nice detail on your spotting
Thanks, Dan! A male Tree Swallow buzzed my head twice on Monday while I was hunting for dragonflies. The first pass was approximately five feet directly overhead. The second pass was headed straight for my face: I flinched to the right at the last second; the swallow missed me but was so close its left wingtip touch my left ear! I took cover in the branches of a nearby pine tree. After a few minutes, I made a hasty retreat to another location. I didn't expect Tree Swallows to be so aggressive -- have you ever heard of this kind of behavior?
lovely spotting!
Helena I'm holding a large praying mantis I spotted in China. It was very friendly. I was taking photos of it and it walked up to me and climbed onto me! It was climbing all the way up my body but I stopped it before it got to my neck. I put it on my hand and my friend took the photo of it close to my face. A second after the photo was taken I it nearly climbed onto my face as I wasn't watching how close I was holding it!
Yeah, perfecto! I love the poses! BTW, dandoucette, what is yr pic on yr name? What r u holding?
Nice shots Walter. These birds used to nest in an old building at work, which they are tearing down now so the birds are out all over the place. They are trying to nest in the back of the Floral Showhouse building. They just fly right in any open door.