Each year now for the last 4 years our home is visited in the summer by swallows. Now the first time they decided to set up home on my front porch I wasn't real happy. Then I found out they are protected and that they are tremendous insect eaters including mosquitoes as part of their diet. Last year we allowed a nest to hatch and I actually watched all 4 young ones launch and take off.  They all survived. This year there was a repeat with 5 babies and now we have 2 more nests ready to launch. It is slightly messy just for a short while and then it cleans up rather easy with a water hose. The nests are made of mud with a little grass. The babies are almost cartoon looking characters with over-sized heads and huge mouths that are usually wide open waiting for a mosquito or other tasty morsel These areonautic acrobats are the only birds I know of that can take off without floundering too much or hitting ground. Not good at our household as we have 4 cats who would love a grounding to occur!

Have a great week!

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