I love my hour of wind and light,
I love men’s faces and their eyes,
I love my spirit’s veering flight
Like swallows under evening skies.
-Sara Teasdale, American lyrical poet (Swallow Flight)
They are aerial insectivores.They dart gracefully over fields, marshes and water bodies at high speeds just above the ground or water making sharp turns, swooping effortlessly catching and eating flies and other insects in flight.
According to legend, the Barn Swallow got its forked tail because it stole fire from the gods to bring to people. An angry deity hurled a firebrand at the swallow, singeing away its middle tail feathers.
Another legend holds that since swallows return to the same location every year to mate and nest, the tattoo of a swallow will guarantee the sailor returns home safely.
It is also said that if the sailor drowns, the swallows will carry his soul to heaven.
Barn Swallow
Sony A77ii
Tamron 150-600
f/6.3, 1/1000s, ISO 320, 600mm
Kavdi Pat, Pune (India)
Jan 2019