smittyone@cox.net Posted June 26, 2020 Share Posted June 26, 2020 Images captured last week at Loess Bluffs NWR in NW Missouri. The bird in the middle is a young Barn Swallow. Like all young Swallows, it'd open it's mouth anytime another bird would be near, as if to say "please shove a bug in there". The two birds flanking it were being bullies and pecking at it, and in one instance even knocked it off it's perch. The two lighter colored birds, are they even younger Barn Swallows that hadn't attained their "adult" plumage? Or are they adults going through molting? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benjamin Posted June 26, 2020 Share Posted June 26, 2020 Yes, these are all juvenile Barn Swallows. Just kids being kids, I suppose. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jefferson Shank Posted June 27, 2020 Share Posted June 27, 2020 Wonderful shots! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Leukering Posted July 1, 2020 Share Posted July 1, 2020 The other two are older birds, possibly from farther south, perhaps MUCH farther south -- like Argentina, that have overshot their northern South American "winter" range. North American-produced Barn Swallows are not in plumages like this until after reaching their winter grounds in South America. I've written an essay on this problem, but it's not yet available online. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jerry Friedman Posted July 1, 2020 Share Posted July 1, 2020 That's very interesting! Is the problem how many South American Barn Swallows winter up here? Or how to recognize them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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