Demands...

The tree swallows have hatched a clutch of eggs in the house in the back yard.  We can hear them chirping, endlessly, while the parent birds fly in and out. They carry droppings from the chicks away, and bring back bugs. This morning, for the first time, I could see shadows of the chicks hopping around behind the little entryway.

At first there was a little yellow beak braced on the bottom edge.

Then it managed to get a toe hold on the door and poke its whole little head out.

When it saw a parent coming, that little bill flew open and filled the air with loud demands.

It was not dissapointed.  Papa bird zoomed in with a tempting morsel.

Again and again.

I think there are three or four chicks in the nest, and the adults work from first light until last to keep those mouths fed.  In a day or two the chicks will leave the confines of their cozy home and fill the sky with their aerodynamic feats.  Chris calls them, "little happy birds," because they look so joyful as they flit through the sky above FairWinds. We are so glad they are here.