Swallows

Tree swallow

 I spent a pleasant couple of hours at the Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge this afternoon. There just is no bad day at Nisqually. There is always something different and often unexpected.

This winter, the refuge hosted a great egret, for example. They are rare in western Washington and even rarer anywhere in the Northwest in the winter.

After seeing an osprey outside my front door yesterday, I figured I would see at least one osprey at the refuge. Instead, I saw lots of swallows - tree swallows and what I thought was a different kind of barn swallow.

I found out the swallows that are making elaborate birdie condominiums are actually cliff swallows. I haven't seen any barn swallows yet this season. Lots of tree swallows, more down on the delta than up on our hill.

Visit my online Swallow Gallery for other favorites.

Tree swallow

Cliff swallows