Hi Chris, I just have to post this to you quickly! I was standing in my front garden now and these swallows were EVERYWHERE! They were swooping and came so close to me, I could have touched them. It must be the change in weather or something but there are swallows flying all over – seems like at least 50 of them! Hannes got out his super-dooper long lens and took these AMAZING shots! Look at the top photo – you will see a sequence of shots taken where a bee is ‘chasing’ the swallow – yes, a BEE is chasing the SWALLOW! Amazing, hey? And this is not photoshopped! The last image of a swallow looks like an immature bird – you can see by the tail feathers that it was a young bird. Maybe all the parent birds were taking their kids for flight training! I was just thinking – are these swallows or are they swifts? Not sure so I need some expert eyes on this!
[one_half]
[/one_half]
[one_half_last]
[/one_half_last]
9 replies on “Swallows everywhere!”
Great shots Hannes! I don’t know how you got such great captures of birds that don’t exactly hover there, waiting for you to take the photos. Maybe tons of images and a bit of luck? =)
Your photos allow us to see almost all sides of the swallow! Excellent!
This are some amazing captures. If anyone knows why the bees are after the swallows, do let me know.
Could the bees have stolen their hard earned honey?
Magnificent photos!
Amazing captures! The bee chasing the swallow is funny!
That’s interesting that the bee was chasing them! Pretty birds.
Wonderful shots of the swallows. I do not recognize these . . . do you know what they are? I so look forward to our Tree Swallows return, which will be pretty soon. I love all swallows and enjoy watching them fly.
What a treat to see! Great pics of such a graceful bird.
Hi Barbie – Those are wonderful photographs! To me they look like swallows …
In KwaZulu Natal in Umdloti, every evening from mid October to mid April, millions of these tiny birds gather for about half an hour before sunset and fly in vast numbers over the Lake Victoria Wetlands. As dusk falls, the swallows drop down in the reeds and are gone … until dusk the next day! It’s supposed to be an amazing spectacle – Helen (who works for me) has been to see them. She said it is very special to watch. This is an article she wrote about it: The Mt Moreland Swallows.