Where swallows fly to warm lands. City swallow: description

The swallow, this graceful and beautiful little bird, is migratory.

Swallows of western populations choose hot Africa for their wintering, just south of the Sahara Desert. There they are, dear, and winter.

Eastern swallow species choose the south of China, the foothills of the Himalayas and South-East Asia for their wintering.

Swallows prefer to fly overnight while it is still daylight.

Look at the infographic, which shows that Russian swallows do not fly away somewhere to warm up and wait out the winter, but swallows from Russia spend the winter in Albania, Algeria, Morocco. Swallows are divided into species and each species prefers its wintering.

There are a lot of swallows on the ground. Some species live exclusively in Eurasia, and in the summer such species of swallows are common throughout the continent from Spain to the Far East, others live in Africa or America. Let's not touch them and see where the most common Russian swallows winter. First of all, one of the most common swallows in our country is the city swallow, which is found in all cities. She hibernates relatively far away, preferring to fly over the equator and stop in South Africa. Another, no less common swallow, Beregovushka, does not fly that far, preferring to winter in Southeast Asia or Saudi Arabia, although it can also be found in winter in Kenya or Madagascar. The famous killer whale for the winter goes to South Africa, India, Indonesia and even to the north of Australia.

Oddly enough, swallows are migratory birds and winter in southern countries. The swallow's flight route is quite difficult and takes up to 3 months in time. The common barn swallow in our country has a size of about 20 cm and weighs about 20 grams.



Swallows, like any other birds, fly away to warm countries.

Swallows are afraid not only of the cold, but also of the rain, gathering in flocks, they fly to the Mediterranean, Africa and other southern countries.

They will have to fly 3-4 months to the southern countries, and in one night they can cover about 500 km.

But when spring comes, the swallows return to where they came from.

Swallows come to us in the spring, when everything is already green and they begin to build nests near people's dwellings, they are especially happy when they return to their old nests.

There are many signs and superstitions associated with swallows, they say that you cannot destroy a swallow's nest, something bad will happen, or if the swallow flies low above the ground, it means it will rain ...

As it turned out, swallows are afraid not only of cold weather, but also of rain. With the onset of cold weather, they fly away to southern or eastern Africa. In one day, they can cover a distance of 500 kilometers. The hardiest swallows from North America can fly up to 40,000 kilometers in a year. When the usual ones are about 12,000. But wherever the swallows are brought, they always return to where they came from. Like other birds, the migration process takes place in large flocks. However, swallows from different countries of Europe and Russia fly in different directions and winter in different places not only in Africa, but also in Asia. During a long flight, swallows catch small drops of water to quench their thirst.

Irina, good afternoon! Swallows winter in the south, and swifts too, they are migratory.

We have three species of swallows, and each species overwinters in a different way:

the city swallow prefers to spend the winter in South Africa;

coastal - in Saudi Arabia, but sometimes it reaches Madagascar;

the killer whale changes preferences, spreading to different parts of the world: South Africa, India or northern Australia.

When autumn comes, it gets cold, the swallows suddenly disappear. We all know that they fly away to warmer regions. But in ancient times it was believed that swallows fall into a swell, while it was believed that they climbed to the bottom of the reservoir and burrowed into the silt. But no one thought, and what then they breathed all winter at the bottom of the reservoir in the silt.

This legend started due to the fact that before leaving, swallows often gathered in flocks near water bodies.

It was only in 1740 that the German scientist Johann Frisch tried to prove that swallows fly away. He thought of tying a red silk thread to their paws. He was able to catch some of his tagged birds. It would seem that the proof is there. But only in 1899, when scientists - ornithologists began to ring birds, it was proved and recognized where which birds winter.

Our swallows were found in South Africa.



Swallows cannot hibernate in a region where the temperature in autumn even drops to 0 degrees, not to mention regions where -10.

These are crows, sparrows and pigeons that can winter calmly even in Siberia, but they are very thermophilic and fly away to hot, tropical countries. The most popular countries for them are Egypt, Algeria, Africa and Morocco, but now the climate in the world is changing and the swallows are beginning to expand their wintering halo.

For example, swallows that live in the north of Central Asia fly to India for wintering.

And from Russia, swallows can winter in Africa and Australia. In general, they hibernate where there is no winter and it is hot all year round.



Family Swallow has 79 species of swallows. Swallows are common all over the world, except for cold latitudes (not found in the Arctic and Antarctic).

Swallows that live in warm countries lead a sedentary way of life.

Swallows that live in northern countries fly away to warmer regions for the winter.

For instance, swallows that nest in Europe, fly away for the winter to Africa (in the northern and northeastern regions, sometimes they reach the central and even southern regions).

According to the phenological calendar, after August 14, swallows and swifts are going to fly to warmer regions, to the very south of the African continent - to South Africa.
In the central regions of Russia, swifts usually go to winter in the twenties of August. Swallows usually fly away later: coastal swallows in late August, city swallows in early September. This year, Moscow stopped observing these black hunters after 28 July. There are two main reasons for the premature departure of birds to warm regions - a sharp cold snap and a lack of food. .

Is it possible to judge the weather in the near future by the behavior of birds?

All swallows have surprisingly developed sense organs, they are able to navigate well in space, and are sensitive to external factors. These long-tailed birds sense the approaching weather change much earlier than humans, they are one of the first to migrate to warm regions, but this does not mean that it is worth believing in signs and waiting for the onset of the first frosts. Swallows tolerate a cool climate well; in Russia they fly to the north much farther than swifts, settling in settlements even in the tundra zone. It happens that swallows and swifts fly south a few days before the cold weather, and it seems that they knew about it in advance. It also happens in a different way: when swallows and swifts do not have time to migrate with the arrival of cold weather and die. Therefore, it is impossible to say for sure whether the birds fly away due to a sharp cold snap.

Hungry Run

Another important reason for the early departure of birds is the disappearance of food in their habitats. Swallows usually set off after accumulating large reserves of fat under the skin, in the muscles and the liver, which they gain by feeding on mosquitoes, midges, flies and other arthropods caught by the updrafts.

Swallows prefer to hunt not only at an altitude, but also on the ground, in contrast to swifts, which grab prey at a height and which have nothing to do but change their habitat even before the onset of autumn. Changes in the weather affect the behavior of insects, their location in the air. In the event of severe bad weather and lack of food, the swallows remain in the area where bad weather catches them, hide in shelters, and crowd together.

Every year it becomes more difficult for birds to find food in large cities. So, Moscow is often covered with artificial lawns, which do not give either flowers or seeds, which insects need so much for habitation and reproduction. In addition, insects are simply destroyed during lawn alteration work. As a result, in Moscow there are much fewer ants, butterflies, beetles, grasshoppers, locusts and caterpillars with which adults feed their chicks. Frequent mowing of lawns also does not contribute to the reproduction of insects, since the plants die off before they have had time to produce seeds. As a result, the soil, devoid of vegetation, dries up and burns out, depriving insects of the opportunity to feed on pollen and build their homes.

A decrease in the number of insects can entail irreparable consequences not only for birds, but also for entire ecosystems, because they serve as a source of food for many reptiles, amphibians and other living organisms.

DID YOU KNOW?

In the 18-19 centuries, people were sure that swallows hibernate, climbing to the bottom of reservoirs, and burrowing in silt there. Fantastic, well, how could they then explain what the swallow breathed? Even the great scientist of that time, an expert on many plants and animals, Karl Liney, for some reason believed in this. Where did this ridiculous legend come from? It turns out that before flying south, swallows often gather in large flocks near the water, on the banks of water bodies. Many observed such a picture, but no one recorded the process of departure: they were and suddenly disappeared - this led to the fact that they began to believe that the birds simply dive into the water until spring. In 1740, a German scientist, Johann Frisch, attempted to prove that swallows do not dive at all, but fly away. He was the first to guess to tie red silk ribbons to the birds' paws. And even after in the spring he managed to catch several swallows marked by him (and, of course, nothing was found there on the strings) no one believed him. Another hundred years passed before another attempt was made in 1848 to prove that swallows hibernate. The Swedish Academy of Sciences even awarded a prize to those who manage to find live swallows sleeping under water. But, fortunately, no one got it. And only since 1899, when ornithologists began ringing all the birds, they were able to find out exactly where which pizzas winter. Swallows were found on another continent - in Africa! It turns out that small birds fly away from their native nests thousands of kilometers. Their route runs over the sea and even over the scorched Sahara desert. Many of them climb to the very south of Africa. And in the spring they make the same path again - they return to the place where they were born, to their own last year's nests.

The swallow is arguably the most famous migratory or migratory bird in the world. Since ancient times, philosophers such as Aristotle and poets such as Becker have wondered where these birds migrate, which are symbols of fidelity, maternal happiness and good luck in the home. Let's reveal the question of where the swallows winter.

General information about swallows

Before proceeding directly to the answer to the question of where the swallows winter, it is necessary to get to know these birds better. A swallow is a bird whose main diet consists of insects, most often flies. The swallow very rarely sits on the ground and catches its food during the flight. The bird has a short neck and a relatively flat beak, its wings are long and pointed. The color of the common swallow's feathers is black-blue with a characteristic metallic sheen. Swallows fly very fast and demonstrate their perfect body control skills in flight.

An interesting feature of swallows is the fact that males and females are very similar to each other, while in most bird species, males have more colorful plumage than females.

Swallows nest in the hollows of trees, on the slopes of ravines, and also under the roofs of houses. There are 88 different species of swallows known in the world, about 10 species are found in Russia, the most common of which in the middle zone of our country is the barn swallow.

Since ancient times, the swallow has been associated with humans. Birds make their nests from mud and straw in sheds, hangars and under the roofs of various village buildings. The swallow helps humans in agriculture, since it controls the population of harmful insects that serve as food for the bird.

Knowing now what the swallow eats and where this little bird lives, let's move on to describing interesting facts.

It is curious to note that these little birds use a rather complex language to communicate with each other, for this they use different body positions and movements during flight, as well as different sound signals. The sounds that swallows make can mean danger, the flirting of the male and the female during the mating season, the call from the parents for their offspring to return to the nest, and some others.

Another interesting fact about the swallow is that this bird has an amazing memory. An adult is able to find the nest that she built last year. In addition, the swallow even remembers where she was born.

Rearing offspring

Swallows mate for life, which is why they are synonymous with fidelity. The female lays 3 to 6 eggs. Thanks to the maneuverability and speed of their flight, these birds can easily catch a large number of insects that feed their chicks. Feeding the offspring is a rather difficult job, since chicks from one nest eat about 1.2 kg of insects, and their parents feed them up to 400 times a day!

Where do swallows live?

The question of where swallows winter is directly related to their habitats on our planet. This bird breeds its offspring in Europe, Asia, North America and Africa. In addition, it can be found in the southern hemisphere of the planet in northern Australia, southern Argentina and southern Africa. The swallow hibernates in these regions.

Thus, swallows raise their offspring in the Northern Hemisphere. The only place in the Southern Hemisphere where the swallow gives birth to its offspring is in the pampas of Argentina.

Below is a picture in which dark green marks the places in the world where swallows breed in the summer, light green marks the areas where swallows fly for the winter, and yellow shows where the birds live all year round.

Let us now reveal the question of when swallows fly away to warm lands. Swallows arrive in Russia in the middle of spring, approximately in April, and for wintering in warm regions they fly away in autumn. In spring, adults build nests, females lay eggs. Then, throughout the summer, both parents participate in feeding and raising their offspring. From late September to mid-October, you can see entire families of these birds gather in flocks and prepare for their long journey.

Swallows migrate both in small flocks and in large flocks. It is interesting to note that the lifestyle of swifts is similar to that for swallows, that is, they also build nests in the Northern Hemisphere, and go to the southern part of the African continent for the winter.

Knowing where swifts and swallows winter, let us now turn to the question of the distances that these birds travel during migration. According to general estimates, the swallow flies a distance of 71,000 km during the year. For comparison, note that the circumference of the globe at the equatorial latitude is 40,000 km, that is, in 1 year the swallow flies around the world almost twice. During the day, the swallow can fly about 200 km. The birds arrive at the wintering site 50-70 days after the start of their journey.

If we consider the question of where the swallows fly from Russia for the winter, then given the enormous size of our country, as well as a dozen species of swallows that live on its territory, we can say that birds migrate to southern Africa and to the countries of southeast Asia such, like Indonesia, Malaysia and others.

Reasons for the decline in swallow populations

Considering the question of where the swallows winter, it should be said about the size of their population. Studies of recent decades have shown that the population of these migratory birds in Europe and Russia declined by 35% between 1990 and 2011.

The main reasons for the decline in the number of swallows are the following:

• Reduction of the area of ​​rural settlements in favor of urban ones. It is difficult for swallows in big cities to find material for building their nests.
• A significant increase in the volume of insecticides used in the cultivated areas, which reduces the nutritional base for birds.
• Destruction of swallow nests by humans.
• Climatic changes in recent years. Global warming all over the world leads to the fact that in October the weather is still warm, as a result, the swallows are delaying their flight. Starting to migrate closer to winter, birds run the risk of dying from the cold during the flight.

Swallow myths and legends

The swallow has inspired people throughout history. So, in Africa it is a symbol of purity, in China it is a symbol of family happiness, in ancient Greece this bird was considered the standard of insight.

In the Middle Ages and Modern Times, when sailors saw swallows on a ship, they knew that the land was close. They also made tattoos of swallows on their bodies, which reflected the experience of such a sailor in the art of sea.

If a swallow dreamed, this is a good sign. For example, if in a dream a bird made a nest in the house, then happiness and prosperity await this family.

Finally, finishing answering the question where the swallows winter, it should be said that these birds are a symbol of spring, since it is they who bring joy to millions of people with their arrival and cheerful cries after a long and cold winter.

Autumn is the time when you can watch flocks of migratory birds going to warm countries. Where do birds fly for the winter, and which birds are considered migratory? Birds that prefer to stay for the winter in their region are called sedentary. Among them are pigeons, sparrows, tits, and crossbills are capable of breeding offspring in the most severe frosts.

Nomadic birds

There are nomadic birds - they fly away only in very severe cold weather, and during a relatively warm winter they can stay in their region. This goldfinches, pike-holes, siskins, waxwings, bullfinches... Hooded crows and rooks wander in the northern regions, and remain sedentary in the southern regions. Some birds migrate only in unfavorable years for their food, for example, if the seeds of coniferous plants have not been sufficiently produced, among the following species:

• waxwings,
• crossbills,
• nuts,
• tits,
• tap-dancing and others.

Migratory birds

Migratory birds migrating for the winter include:

The reason for their migration is lack of food, the disappearance of caterpillars and larvae in winter and other insects that form the basis of the poultry diet. About half of the forest birds will fly away for wintering, but from the tundra or taiga, from the swampy areas, almost all species of feathered inhabitants will go to the warm wintering places.

When choosing where to fly for the winter, most species will prefer their usual conditions. Forest dwellers will choose forest lands for wintering, meadows - meadows or fields, steppe dwellers will find a new place of residence in the steppes. Here they will find the usual food and environment, similar to those in their homeland.

Choosing where to fly, the birds will be guided both by the destination - the place of future wintering, and by the opportunity to feed themselves during the long journey. Therefore, the route of migratory birds does not run in a straight line to the wintering place, but contains various bends, turns and stops where they rest and eat. In the route of their flight, they will also adhere to their usual terrain - forests, fields, steppes. If the path runs through the deserts - Karakum Desert, Sahara, Libyan Desert- migratory species tend to fly through these places as quickly as possible.

The birds are guided by an unmistakable instinct - sometimes young animals that do not know the way fly away earlier than more experienced individuals. During the flight, the birds exchange signals like an echo. Some species fly during the day, others prefer to travel at night and rest during the day. Usually, females and males travel at the same time, with the exception of finches (their females fly away earlier for the winter) and storks (their males arrive in their permanent habitats earlier than females).

It is those species of birds that feed on insects that are the first to leave the hatched nests until spring. Swallows and Swifts set off as soon as autumn approaches, in August, during the first night cold snaps. Swans, ducks and geese are the last to fly to the wintering grounds: this happens when the temperature drops below zero, the rivers are covered with a crust of ice and forage becomes impossible.

Migration routes of migratory birds

Ducks go to the Balkans, swans fly to Greece and Great Britain. Starlings go to the Mediterranean coast. Wagtails fly to Africa or Asia; they also often choose India for wintering. Thrushes love to winter in France, Spain, Portugal, Italy. The cranes go further - to Egypt, to the Nile River. Dubrovnik Bunting flies from the Moskva River and the Oka River through Siberia to South China.

To establish where birds fly for the winter, bird watchers use the ringing method. It is known that some waterfowl winter in Russia. White owl from the tundra flies into the central Russian forest-steppe, seagulls will go to the Sea of ​​Azov or to the south of the Caspian Sea. Many migratory birds choose Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Azerbaijan for wintering - large concentrations of finches, ducks, geese are observed here during the wintering period, and reserves are specially created in these regions.

There is a unique case - the polar mallards fly to Antarctica for wintering, due to the presence of food, which is typical for the cold Antarctic water.

Flight speed

The flight speed of birds during migration is relatively low. One of the slowest is the quail - it flies at a speed of about 40 km / h, among the fastest are the black swift (160 km / h). But, during the flight, birds can spend a lot of time on parking, and in general, their long journeys - for example, to Africa - can last for 2 - 4 months. The speed of the spring flight with the return of migratory species is higher - in the spring the birds return home faster than in winter they fly to winter.

In this article, you will learn about the name of the city swallow, get acquainted with its appearance, the features of life and nesting of this species. It can be seen on almost all inhabited continents, where it hibernates or nests. This is mainly an urban bird that prefers to equip its nests on houses. The city swallow loves to circle in the upper layers of the air, rising to a great height before the onset of bad weather, and during and after rain to circle above the ground, catching insects frightened by it. During such a hunt, it prefers a wide space for flight. She is rarely seen hunting in narrow alleys.

Although the voice at the funnel sounds rather weak, it is quite often heard during the flight. In most countries, it is considered a sin to destroy the nests that this bird creates. The city swallow is slightly smaller than the sparrow in size. It is believed that if she settled under the roof of a house, then this promises all its inhabitants happiness.

City swallow: description

In the upper part of the plumage, black color prevails, acquiring a blue tint in the light. The bottom from beak to tail is bright white, while the notch on the tail is rather shallow. The paws of the bird are completely covered with feathers up to the claws. Outwardly, it is impossible to distinguish the female from the male. In addition, there are no seasonal differences in plumage. Even in young chicks, the coloration is similar to that in adults, although the upper part of the body remains black-gray for some time.

The blue tint in young birds is rather weak, and brown streaks are present on the sides and chest. Due to the bright white rump and the absence of a dark band, this bird is easy to distinguish among similar species, even at a considerable distance. The average weight of the city swallow ranges from 18-20 g with a length of 15-17 cm. It is noteworthy that, despite the fact that the length of the wings does not exceed 12 cm, their wingspan reaches 33 cm.

Lifestyle

Arrival in the spring period is quite extended, most of the birds begin to arrive at the beginning of the blooming of greenery, and the rest returns only by the end of May. Previously, this species preferred to settle on rocks, but now their settlements can be found on stone buildings. The funnel, in pursuit of prey, can reach speeds of up to 45 km / h, managing to not only feed at this speed, but also to quench its thirst. He flies over water sources with an elongated neck, thanks to which he manages to scoop it up with his beak.

In addition, in flight, they can swim over the water several times, flying over the water. Swallows prefer not to descend directly to the ground, using mainly tree tops or wires for rest.

Habitat

Among themselves, they usually live quite peacefully, preferring even to create housing in groups. Unlike other birds, they do not need to protect the hunting territory, because there are enough midges for everyone in the summer. The city swallow is distributed practically throughout Eurasia, right up to the far north. At the same time, the distribution in cities is uneven, in different regions it can be either an ordinary or an unusually rare bird. These migratory birds return to their native lands as soon as the first greenery appears on the trees, willingly settling in last year's nests. In mountainous places they nest in colonies, attaching on the rocks the same nests as those that they build in cities.

Features of nesting

With the onset of spring, the swallows tend to return to the same area where they nested earlier. Usually the best-preserved nests are occupied by those birds that arrived first. Those who remain have to choose a place to build it shortly after arrival, usually in the morning or evening. Most often, city swallows settle in colonies in which there are from 10 to 100 nests. There may also be nests of individual pairs. In their shape, their dwellings resemble 1/4 of a ball. They equip them under eaves, balconies, beams and other areas of the house that are protected from rain, creating nests from small lumps of damp mud. The immediate timing of the start of egg laying directly depends on the conditions in which the funnel has to live, and the moment when the number of insects in the air will maximize. For example, in the northern regions, the city swallow manages to breed only one offspring, and closer to the central and southern regions, there are usually two clutches.

Males appear first in places suitable for cohabitation, which attract females, sometimes starting to build nests alone. However, most couples are formed during the flight, so often by the time the future home is arranged, the couple works together.

Protecting the nest from sparrows

The houses of city swallows are quite often chosen by sparrows. Most often, they occupy them at a time when the swallows have not yet completed construction, and the size of the hole in their dwelling remains sufficient for the sparrow to fly there without any problems. When the construction of the house is fully completed, the hole in it will be so small that the sparrow cannot penetrate. It is noteworthy that in the competition for housing, the struggle sometimes reaches a critical point.

In some cases, sparrows take over the dwelling nests of funnels, often killing their direct owners. At the same time, the swallows, seeing that they cannot drive out the invader, simply walled him up inside. Thanks to the universal construction technology, the nests remain in good condition for several years, therefore, birds are provided with permanent nesting places.

Highlights in nest arrangement

Funnels prefer to build nests close to each other. The main building materials are wet earth and small lumps of mud. They find dirt along the edges of puddles. In order to obtain an optimal clod of dirt, the bird vigorously pecks at the ground. In most cases, both birds build a swallow's nest. Depending on the weather conditions during the nesting period, the time required for construction rarely exceeds three weeks, taking mostly 3 to 10 days.

The nest is attached at the same time by the side and the top. The inlet is located at the top of the nest, which optimally protects the chicks from the elements. The swallow's nest is lined inside with small feathers, down, soft fibers of plant origin, pieces of dry moss. In the absence of these materials, birds willingly replace them with pieces of tow, thread and cotton wool. Its width on the outside rarely exceeds 30 cm, height 12 cm, and length 15 cm.On the inside, the height of the tray is rarely higher than 3 cm.

Masonry

The clutch contains about five white eggs with very thin shells, which the parents incubate in turns for two weeks. The eggs have a sharply rounded blunt end and a gradually sharpening other pole. Newborn chicks have rare light gray down. The mouth cavity of the chicks is yellow. A swallow chick is completely helpless in the first days of its life. That is why, for most of the day, the female heats the chicks, and the male provides them with a sufficient amount of food. In bad weather, the mother takes part in fishing, as a result of which she is forced to leave offspring. City swallows prefer to hunt in clear weather.

Attacking insects, they soar upward. At this time, they can often be seen over open areas. In inclement weather, birds prefer to fly much closer to the ground and less often. Unlike the barn swallow, the city swallow feeds not only its chicks, but also chicks in neighboring nests, without making significant differences between them and simply bringing the caught midges to the nearest nest.

Chick development

The duration of incubation depends on weather conditions and ranges from several weeks in good weather, and a month in bad weather. Both parents are engaged in incubation and further feeding of young animals. Chicks stay in the nest for no more than three weeks. During this period, they manage to go through all the stages of formation, become sighted and fledge, starting to resemble adult birds as much as possible. At the end of the second week, they already begin to fly out of the nest. At first, the swallow chick prefers to stay close to the nest, as the adults continue to feed it.

Only by autumn does the young gather in flocks and, following the example of their parents, begin to lead a nomadic lifestyle, feeding on their own until they leave. In autumn, before flying to warm regions, one can quite often see craters sitting on telegraph wires, wire fences or flying high over fields and meadows. Since funnels are migratory birds, with the onset of the first cold weather, you can watch them fly off to winter in South Africa or to the south of Asia.

Feeding chicks

During the feeding period of chicks, funnels destroy a very impressive number of various insects. During the day, each of the parents flies up to the chicks with food about three hundred times. In addition, when feeding several broods over the summer, a pair of funnels catches about a million insects. The rate at which the chicks develop also depends to a large extent on weather conditions. If there is not too much rainfall during the summer period, it is not difficult for parents to provide them with the necessary amount of food, but if the weather is unfavorable, the chicks often have to starve. In the event of an early onset of cold weather, parents are forced to leave their chicks to die of hunger, going to warmer regions.

Caring for chicks

The care of adults for chicks is reduced to their heating, constant feeding, cleaning the dwelling from their excrement, as well as repair and protection. Moreover, most often it has to be protected from swallows that have not yet managed to build their nests. In the first days of life, chicks receive the minimum portions of food, consisting exclusively of small insects.

During the first week after the appearance of the chicks, there are interruptions in heating from the parents, and later they completely stop warming the chicks in the daytime, concentrating exclusively on foraging. At one week old, the chicks sit during the day mostly with their heads raised, which greatly simplifies the feeding procedure. Chicks aged two weeks and older are characterized by pecking movements.

What do city swallows eat?

Funnels eat mainly flying insects: from small beetles to midges. Much less often you can see the capture of butterflies, grasshoppers and spiders. Birds prefer to hunt insects by flying in open areas. In inclement weather, they try not to hunt, waiting out this time in the nests, or they fly to warm up and dry into the premises, huddling in heaps in the attics. With prolonged bad weather, an extremely large number of swallows die, which cannot tolerate a prolonged period of torpor.

Flights

Urban birds, including funnels, prefer to fly south in small groups or in a continuous thin and amorphous stream, making flights exclusively in the daytime. The period of departure from large cities begins mainly in August, in the steppe zone it can drag on until the beginning of October. They hibernate mainly in southern Africa and Asia.

Attracting swallows to cities

Funnels can be artificially attracted to nest. The only thing you need to do for this is to equip artificial nests, building them in the likeness of real ones. Gypsum, cement mixed with sawdust are perfect as the main material. In the absence of these materials, you can even use papier-mâché, which is hung under the roofs.

It should be borne in mind that all urban birds, including swallows, will be much more willing to inhabit your city if they find a sufficient number of suitable nesting places. For this, special shelves should be nailed under the eaves or containers with wet clay should be placed outside the windows. If there are still places nearby where swallows can catch insects, then they can easily be attracted to your area.

Despite its diminutive size, the funnel swallow is a tireless worker. Seeing their appearance in the spring, we look forward to warmth with joy and impatience and understand that spring has come. Perhaps that is why these first messengers of warmth are loved by all people and deeply believe that the birds that have settled under the roof of the house will bring happiness to its inhabitants.