Snapshots – Barn Swallow

Barn Swallows nest in the nooks and crannies of the maintenance buildings at Parker River NWR every summer. They commonly use human structures for their nesting sites and are welcomed because of their appetite for flying insects. It has a worldwide distribution and is probably the most widespread passerine in the world. This is a male sitting on a shed roof while taking a break from hunting. Barn Swallows have a dark blue back and wings with a cinnamon forehead and throat with a slightly darker collar.

The second photo is another male that was flying around the entrance to some nesting sites under a ledge on a larger building. The white spots on a forked tail are quite visible when the bird is in flight.