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Project Noah Nature School
Hirundo neoxena
Three Welcome swallow chicks waiting for parents to return with food. Small, dark blue bird with a red/orange chest. Lots of pointy features - wings, beak, forked tail. Very agile flyers, able to change direction very quickly. Parents will use darting displays to threaten perceived predators who approach the nest site.
Open country side. Near open ponds and streams to feed on insects.
Nest is built in the eaves of a house out of mud and grass. Second year that the nest has been occupied. Welcome swallows are recent addition to New Zealand's native bird fauna. Making the change from the odd vagrant to established breeding population around 60 years ago.
Spotted on Dec 31, 2012
Submitted on Jan 1, 2013
1 Comment
Beautiful spotting! Welcome to Project Noah!