Swallows In The Sun
I went to Ridgefield again this past weekend (try to contain your surprise), heading up to be there when the gates opened at 6am, a little too far past sunrise for my liking. I had hoped to photograph blackbirds again and did get a few of a singing male red-wing in the beautiful light, but in general the birds weren’t too active so I headed further into the refuge.
The Kiwa Trail is open this time of year and even though I rarely get any good pictures on it, I wanted to see if the turtles or frogs were out and about. They weren’t, but near the end of the trail I met a pair of barn swallows that were building a nest under one of the wooden footbridges. They were remarkably tolerant of my presence so I spent the next hour watching them until the beautiful light was gone.
This is the male, they tend to have darker chests than the females, watch this space for more of both of them as I got a handful of pictures that I really like. Compare this picture in the early sunlight to a similar picture on an overcast day in a different part of the refuge. I like both pictures, and despite what it might seem barn swallows really don’t spend a lot of time with their mouths open.
Tags: barn swallow, birds, Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge, Washington