Balestrucci ( Delichon urbica) taking in the beak a ball of mud to make their nest . View larger

Balestruccio (Delichon urbica) This species unlike the swallow builds

its nest in towns under the eaves of roofs, balconies, or under the

eaves. Its cup-shaped nest is a small work of art, which is reoccupied

every year with the arrival of spring when they leave the country

where they spent the winter (Africa south of the Sahara) to return to

nesting sites. Build or repair the nest is quite difficult: the

Balestrucci carrying in its beak balls of mud that are stacked and

pressed as if they were small bricks and move on to the next layer

will have to wait for everything to dry off well. To complete the nest

it will take about 2800 "bricks" and then as many round trips back to

the "supplier" (puddles, ponds, swamps, rivers, country roads) but let

us not be frightened by the numbers ... our talented builders

eventually work in just 14 days. Thanks for your comments

At work as this bird use to be,(I like here how eyes are with a bit of bright)I saw them in this posture lot of time and you caught excellent this activity,In my are even is warm with one moth earlier they are no yet come,I saw few days ago on a field some storks.

Caro Giangiorgio, quando vedo le tue foto mi chiedo..."ma come fai"? Bellissima anche questa!

What a capture of this industrious bunch.And you managed to get that catch light in all the visible eyes as if they had you in their sight.Bravo!

Meilleures salutations-Laurent

Very good catch Giangiorgio! I've seen this kind of sight in Alaska (above the artic circle)  but I did not get a good shot like this. Seems that the Swallow is very much the same specie to me also. TFS!

Thank you for the story behind these fascinating birds!!! An excellent image that has caused me to want to study these birds more!

sincere regards, Gail

They almost resemble our Barn Swallow from your description about their nesting habits and their profile is similiar but not their coloring. The Barn Swallow I see is not nearly as white.

 

I like how you caught the group, . . . "hard at work!"

 

Cheers always,

Jim j.

Very interesting capture,unusual and informative explenations.I saw them once flying above tel-aviv,but no chance to catch...

Regards! Hanan

Beautiful nature image, I also love the colors, perfect timing to capture the bird flying!!!

Warmest regards,

LuDa

Excellent image and behavior shot.  These birds are quick.  Very difficult capture; nicely done.

Excellent nature shot of these precious guys with great camera work, lovely clarity and nice colors.

Un'altra bella foto. A parte i soggetti che sono molto belli, è bello il momento che hai saputo cogliere, con gli occhi di tutti e 4 i soggetti ben visibili e 3 dei quali che guardano verso di te. Inoltre il soggetto in volo riempie bene il fotogramma che altrimenti sarebbe sbilanciato o comunque più statico. E bello anche perché documenta un momento particolare ovvero la raccolta del fango per la costruzione del nido.

A great moment in nature captured very well Giangiorgio!

wonderful capture

Very interesting bird behavior, Giangiorgio. It must be pretty time consuming to get enough mud to make their nest. It's amazing how animals adapt to the environment. Best regards, Paul.