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Barn Swallows

Lake Victoria Conservancy Report

Herewith report from the Lake Victoria Conservancy on barn swallows activity at the Lake Victoria Roost, Mount Moreland.

Phenomenal!

A grey sky evening with the threat of rain, but what a display of barn swallows. For the first time in a long time we saw them massing from our house along the Umdloti River. It looked so amazing that I decided to go to the view site which earlier I had decided to ignore due to wind and the threat of rain. Well, it was spectacular they came in from all sides moving up, and forward, across the reedbed. And were they talking to each other! They just kept on coming. Then down across the reedbed, back and forth, settling then up again and down. As the skies darkened more and more poured into the reeds in front of us. Two large dark patches appeared on the reeds in the centre back and to the left of a crescent area inhabited earlier in the season by Queleas, small seed eating birds. Never after 3 years of observation have I seen such density on the reeds. And who was there to share this wonder - Granpa1 and his wife.. that was their car registration - and what fascinating birders they were to talk to. They had witnessed the migration route of so many species through Israel. There was also another couple, obviously also birders, who ventured to the bottom of our view site and were awe struck by density of swallows arriving into the roost. What a privilege. It just goes to show that you never can tell with nature when is the best time.

We hope the numbers stay around for a day or two resting as we have Carte Blanche a local television programme that challenges a variety of controversial issues coming to see what we, the Lake Victoria Conservancy, custodians of the swallows, have been up to in the face of the new King Shaka International Airport that is due to open on 1 May 2010. For those that live in Durban, or are visitors, come and celebrate these last few days of the Barn Swallows with us as they return to Europe. When they return in October our skies will be filled with aeroplanes and the experience will never be quite the same. We sincerely hope the swallows will stay using the roost as the Conservancy has worked long and hard with the Airport Company South Africa and other role players such as Tongaat Hulett, the property owners, and the local eThekwini Municipality to protect the wetland roost which is an I.B.A, an Important Bird Area, declared by Birdlife International as it hosts over 1% of the world's Barn Swallows.