Life Cycle
Barn swallows form breeding pairs in the spring when they return to their breeding grounds. The male tries to attract a female by spreading his wings and singing. Barn swallows often mate in the air. Both parents build the nest.
Nests are made of mud and lined with grass and feathers. The barn swallow pair will gather mud and roll it into a pellet and then carry it back to the nesting site in their bills. The cup-shaped nest is built in the rafters or eaves of buildings, on bridges, in mine shafts or on other manmade structures. Occasionally, the barn swallow will build a nest under a rock ledge or cliff face, but that is rare. Like their name suggests, barns are one of the favorite location for barn swallows to build their nests and a single barn may be used by five to eight pairs of barn swallows.
The female lays four to six eggs. Both parents help incubate the eggs and care for the young. The eggs take around two weeks to hatch and the chicks will fledge when they are about three weeks old. The parents will continue to feed them for up to a week after they fledge. The female may have two broods a year. The same pair may mate for several years.
Behavior
The barn swallow uses a variety of vocalizations to communicate. It has an alarm call to warn of predators and a mating call used to attract a mate.
Image Credits: Clipart.com unless otherwise noted
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