Cliff Swallow--Strength in Numbers

BirdNote^®

Cliff Swallow--Strength in Numbers

Adapted from a script by Frances Wood

This is BirdNote!
[Flight calls of Cliff Swallows]
[More Cliff Swallow flight calls]
Cliff Swallows have returned from wintering in South America, and they’re gathering in nesting colonies. A single colony in the West may contain up to 3,700 nests. In the East, colonies are generally a bit smaller. Look for swarms of these swallows under bridges, on cliffs, under the eaves of barns, or even the side of a house.
[Sound of a large colony]
They construct their gourd-shaped nests out of mud, side-by-side and all jumbled together. One parent usually guards the nest, often peeking out of the round opening, showing its creamy-white forehead-patch.
[Sounds of colony continued]
Cliff Swallows consume hordes of flying insects. [Insects]
These birds have only five different calls, but one—a unique “squeak call”—tells others that they’ve found food. [Song contains squeak call]  So, when one bird finds a swarm of insects, it spreads the word to its neighbors, perhaps part of the reason these birds thrive in large colonies.
[Song of the Cliff Swallow continued]
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Bird sounds provided by The Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Flight call [107569] recorded by D.S. Herr; calls at a large nesting colony [111118] T. Sander; song with squeak note [105668] by G.A. Keller.
Producer: John Kessler
Executive Producer: Chris Peterson
© 2011 Tune In to Nature.org   May 2011/2021 / June 2023   

Narrator:  Michael Stein
ID# (old: 050405CLSWKPLU) CLSW-01c-2021-5-2