Legend has it that the barn swallow stole fire from the gods and gave it to man. This is probably a reference to the barn swallow, which has the longest, most deeply forked tail of them all. You’ve probably heard birds and some butterflies described as having swallowlike tails. Swallows know that tractors stir up insects and provide them with a good source of food. Some farmers are entertained by swallows that swirl around them as they mow and cultivate their land. They are not birds of the forest, but of open grasslands, lakes, and farms. Like all swallows, they need open areas to find food. In Brooklyn, you have a good chance seeing barn swallows in flight above the lake in Prospect Park. Barn swallows feed on insects, and they do most of their feeding while in flight, either over a body of water like a lake or pond or over fields. They fly lower to the ground and can drink water and bathe while in flight by touching the water with their belly for a quick bath. The flight pattern of the barn swallow is slightly different from other swallow species. An adult feeding a fledgling while in flight.
Males are somewhat territorial but will join with other swallows to ward off and mob predators like crows and hawks. Barn swallows may nest once or twice during the season and may use the same nest again.
In the beginning of the nesting season-May here in Brooklyn-it is very common to see barn swallows visiting a mud pond or shore bank to pick up material for the construction on the nest. The nest is mud-lined and reinforced with straw or grass.
When hanging from a cross beam, the nest is a full cup. When adjacent to a wall, the nest would be a half-cup. The barn swallow builds its nest in different shapes depending upon placement. This barn swallow and its nest are tucked under the eaves of a yurt in Mongolia. Before these manmade structures were around, barn swallows would nest in caves. This blue and tawny swallow builds its nest mainly in manmade structures such as barns, bridges, and other buildings, often in the eaves of a building with a good overhang. That widespread bird is the beautiful barn swallow ( Hirundo rustica). There are seven continents in the world, and there is a Brooklyn-breeding bird that can be found on each one but Antarctica. Birds & Other Wildlife Birds of Brooklyn: Barn Swallow