Nest-side Story

Following on, admittedly with some delay, from my previous two posts about the hapless Morning Warblers nesting in the eaves just outside our bedroom, here is a somewhat happier bird tale.

We have a pair of Wire-tailed Swallows which have been nesting for several years under our balcony roof, despite the best efforts of the Little Swifts to commandeering their nest and build their own scruffy additions.

One night last week, at around 9pm, I heard a chirping sound on the floor, which transpired to be coming from a tiny swallow chick, fallen from its nest. As it was pitch dark, and I did not want to disturb the parents and remaining chicks (if there were any, which I did not know at that point), I decided to try to look after the chick for the night and then attempt to replace it in the nest in the morning, with the hope its parents would find it and resume feeding it.

So, not knowing how long the little chick had been flailing around on the floor, using a syringe (without the needle of course!) I fed it some drops of rehydrant solution (which I quickly made with glucose, a tiny speck of salt and water), followed by some small slivers of insect-shaped chicken – which it swallowed with gusto – its bright yellow mouth pleading for more! I continued to feed it every half hour until quite late into the night.

I placed it in a small cosy box to keep it warm throughout the night. First thing in the morning, I fed it again, and then Ian clambered up a ladder to pop it back in its nest. I decided to wait half an hour to see if the parents would return (the ideal, desired scenario) but if they did not, I would do my best to try and raise the chick myself.

But – happily! – the parents returned to the nest in no time at all and I could then tell from seeing two gaping mouths that there was another chick in there too.

Feeding their offspring is an onerous, non-stop job for the parents... One mouthful in and off they go again…

The disadvantage of having swallows nesting under your roof:

It’s clear to see from this photo how the Wire-tailed Swallow got its name. You can also see evidence of the Little Swifts having tried to take over the nest. The scruffy, feathery back part of the nest is the swifts’ addition before the swallows managed to move back in and complete their neat little mud-cup:

A few days later, in the afternoon, I suddenly spotted one of the chicks – now significantly larger and well developed - perched on our balcony chair, having just made its pioneer leap from nest to fresh air and choosing the chair as its first port of call. I managed to get a quick (fuzzy) shot of it through the glass of our living room door. What a joy – to think this chick, now leaving the nest, might be the one we had rescued!

And how incredible to see how very confidently the fledgling then took to the air, already steady on the wing (bad shot, I know, but it tells the story!)...

Its immediate flying prowess didn’t stop the chick begging for food, however, and the parents fulfilling its wishes – some habits die hard.

You can see the grey skullcap of the youngster behind the adult with its ochre cap:

And the very next morning, Chick Number Two emerges – ready too to take to the wing and fly the nest.

A very gratifying swallow tale indeed…