I Brought You Flowers

Day 211: The Tree Swallows were late in arriving this year, so now the rush is on to find spots to nest. There is much discussion on the wire, a constant chatter of "cheery! cheery! cheery!" and various chips, chirps and peeps. A great deal of to-ing and fro-ing goes on as prospective tenants assess the size of doorways, the exposure to light, the direction of the prevailing winds. Holes must be large enough to admit the parent bird but not enough to allow a parasitic species or a predator to invade, and we are discussing a matter of millimeters here, judged by expert eyes. It is often a tight fit, that entryway, one which takes jockeying of shoulders and hard pushing to enter or exit, but this is what the birds prefer. And there is much courting in the air with both members of the couples bringing nesting material to the chosen site. Nothing like flowers to soften the heart of a potential mate!