Swallows are here!!!

[Danllan]

Just heard one singing well in south Shropshire as I have been gathering some fencing up,its not always that your in the right place at the right time,cuckoo that is

True enough, but when I was child - 70s / 80s - their numbers were such that you'd have been hard put to be in any given area and not to have heard one. My understanding is that the decline in cuckoo numbers is probably down to the combination of three factors: host species habitat decline; climate change allowing host species to breed a little earlier, throwing the cuckoos out of sync'; Southern Europeans shooting them as they pass through on migration - I wondered why on Earth they would shoot cuckoos, but apparently they shoot swallows, warblers and everything else too.

As a slight digression, but related to one's having to be in the 'right' place at the right time, only twice in my life have I been present when a tree has naturally (excluding storms) fallen down. The first time in a friend's woodland in Herts in, I guess, the late 80s, when a very large beech went over about thirty yards away, without any clue to what was about to happen but, fortunately, falling away from me. The second time was on this place a couple of years ago, I had just come through a gate and, having closed it, was about to get back in the Kioti when I heard a very loud 'CRACK' and a fair sized [edit] ̶a̶s̶h̶ sycamore went over from a hedge about a hundred yards away. Both of these were in summertime.

Obviously trees fall down all over the place every day, I come across fallen ones here every few weeks or so, but if you aren't around you just can't see it.

 

[Martinamachine]

Saw the first two on the 18th near Nottingham

 

[beardy]

Saw the first ones here on the 17th. Been keeping a record of the first sightings for the last 12 years, it's surprising there is only a few days between the sightings.
Not heard a cuckoo for years in these parts.

 

[GOODYSMATE]

Saw the first swallows here yesterday , they normally sit on the overhead cable and talk to me as I leave hose running to make them a muddied puddle

 

[Danllan]

Saw the first swallows here yesterday , they normally sit on the overhead cable and talk to me as I leave hose running to make them a muddied puddle

You're not alone.

 

[primmiemoo]

Grasshopper warblers were trilling first thing, which is lovely.

No swallows.

 

[YorkshireAndrew]

Yes, summer is not far off. Just seen my first hitch hiker.

Aren’t they a member of the tit family ?

 

[Danllan]

Well, today the first pair arrived here in West Carms; today we have also had our first honey bee swarm of the year.

Grasshopper warblers were trilling first thing, which is lovely.

No swallows.

Which makes me wonder which migratory route yours take; I suppose that ours may come straight across the Bay of Biscay from north-west Iberia, missing Devonshire, but I have always assumed they take a more land or coastal based route which would mean them crossing over you.

Aren’t they a member of the tit family ?

Quite right, often Panurus biarmicus.

 

[Dry Rot]

Aren’t they a member of the tit family ?

A lot of Bearded Tits about this year.

 

[primmiemoo]

A lot of Bearded Tits about this year.

It's more PC to say Hipsters these days

 

[primmiemoo]

Well, today the first pair arrived here in West Carms; today we have also had our first honey bee swarm of the year.



Which makes me wonder which migratory route yours take; I suppose that ours may come straight across the Bay of Biscay from north-west Iberia, missing Devonshire, but I have always assumed they take a more land or coastal based route which would mean them crossing over you.




Quite right, often Panurus biarmicus.

I think they come in over South West Cornwall and disperse from there. I've seen a large flock in the Roseland Peninsula a few days before seeing the first ones here before.

Only one pair nested here last year.

 

[Frank-the-Wool]

I am very concerned about the lack of Swallows and Martins.
Having seen the first Swallow the earliest ever on 22nd March this year and Sand Martins with a few House Martins in early April, I have only seen the odd Swallow since.
Last year we had at least a dozen pairs of Swallows that all had at least two broods and some three. At present we only have two pairs thinking about nesting.

Did hear a Cuckoo this morning and saw two at the end of March when they had just arrived

 

[Farmer_Joe]

first one today!

 

[Danllan]

I think they come in over South West Cornwall and disperse from there. I've seen a large flock in the Roseland Peninsula a few days before seeing the first ones here before.

Only one pair nested here last year.

Interesting, as technology shrinks satellite trackers ever more it will be fascinating to see the precise routes taken. They are very wonderful little birds, and even just thinking / writing of them makes me smile.

We had the usual numbers last year, five pairs +/- a couple, and saw two broods from all, one pair with three - I'm not sure how well the last one did.

 

[Scholsey]

saw one on the 12th but was the 16th before saw another, i wonder if swallows are going to be a casualty of climate change, will be a sad summer without a swallow.

 

[Lili]

Swallows have arrived at last and straight down to work checking last year's nests for maintenance work. Also the house martins have put in an appearance. Hopefully the cuckoo will check in soon.

 

[4course]

saw first one this morning whilst having a coffee in the garden and by dusk there was over a dozen flying and look to be pairing up

 

[steveR]

Arrived here last week, and immediately sussing out the old nesting sites in the buildings. Time to move the bbq equipment before they cover it in crap!

 

[penntor]

First pair seen flying around my yard 20th April this year. Last year it was the 25th April and in 2017 it was the 15th April.