Birding/Identity

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Expert: - 6/14/2011


Question
Lake Gerar
Lake Gerar
Please help identify this bird I've enclosed a photo, have searched too many bird books and online. found in Sussex County De along the coast. They are rarely resting and very quick, sometimes in pairs.
I really appreciate your help, I love taking the pictures but now want to learn more.

Thanks,

Mike

Answer
It is a Barn Swallow, a distinctive bird with bold plumage and a long, slender, deeply forked tail. Barn Swallows are deep blue above, with an orange-buff breast and belly. They have russet throats and forehead patches. The rest of the head is deep blue, extending in a line through the eye, giving the birds a masked appearance. Females are slightly duller and shorter-tailed than males. Juveniles look similar to adults, but have
Barn Swallows need open areas to forage and suitable sites for nesting, now almost always buildings, bridges, or other man-made structures. They generally avoid unbroken forest and very dry areas. Their original habitat was most likely mountainous areas and seacoasts with caves, hollow trees, and rock crevices for nesting. Now that they have adapted to living with humans, they are found in agricultural areas, suburbs, and along highways--anywhere there are open areas and nesting structures, especially if water is close by.


Barn Swallows can often be seen foraging for insects low over fields or water. In bad weather, they sometimes forage on the ground. They gather mud for their nests from mud puddles.
    Questioner's Rating
    Rating(1-10)Knowledgeability = 10Clarity of Response = 10Politeness = 10
    CommentOnce again I thank you for your help, sometimes the bird pictures in the books don't look exactly the same. Mike


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Roger Lederer

Expertise

Any and all about WILD birds - the science of ornithology. Information about birdwatching, ecology, conservation, migration, behavior, banding, rehabilitation, feeding, songs, binoculars, identification, and careers in ornithology. No questions about pet or caged birds, please.

Experience

Have a PhD and over forty years as a professional ornithologist - research, teaching, author, speaker, webmaster of Ornithology.com . Have written thirty scientific papers, three bird field guides, a textbook in ecology and two recent books entitled "Amazing Birds" and "Birds of New England". Have traveled to over 90 countries watching birds.

Education/Credentials
PhD in Zoology/Ornithology; Emeritus Professor of Biological Sciences; former Dean of the College of Natural Sciences at California State University, Chico

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