As Peter says, young Swalows,that weigh less than 30g when fully fledged,yet they,ll fly 4000 and odd miles to Africa,and return, next year to that same wood shed where they were born,and thats without Sat-Nav,The joys of Nature,Their parents arrived on the 3rd of April,They hatched 13 days ago,and they,ll be flying this time next week, then,if the weather is good,their parents might raise a second brood,I,ve lived here for 5 years,and have seen dozens of birds raised in my woodshed,
When the parents are feeding 4 hungry mouths with their sole diet,of Insects,they do so at a rate that beggers belief,I have counted how many visits to the nest when their feeding,on average 300 times an hour,both parents feed their young,their amazing to watch,
Their very inquisitive birds,I just have to leave my house doors open,and their in,Its as if,when they see an open door,they have to check it out,to look for a suitable nesting site,
I used to believe that they returned to the same nest,that they were born in,I don,t think they do,,they do return to the same shed,but each year they make a new nest,or repair an old one,I, have,10 nests in my shed,but only 2 breeding pair,that were last years fledglings,their parents did,nt return,so i must assume they died on route, or fell to predators,
their a joy to my heart,
Wullie