It looks like the parents, Martin and Martina, are keen for our 'teenagers' Itchy and Fathead to leave the nest. They're beginning to stop them coming into the nest. We hope they're thinking about raising a second clutch. It would be great news if this happened.
2007 would be a fantastic year if our family raised two broods.
The skies are filling with gangs of young chattering House Martins here. They are becoming stronger fliers every day.
NEST DIARY:
15 May: Martin and Martina move in
27 May: eggs laid
20 July: Itchy and Fathead take first frantic test flight
31 July: parents start blocking Itchy and Fathead from coming home.
DID YOU KNOW ...?
During stormy weather, House Martins often pack into the nearest nest seeking refuge. Up to 14 birds have been found stuffed into one tiny nest!
The oldest one ever found was 14 years old. In human terms that would be about 210 years old!
One of the great remaining mysteries of the bird world is WHERE DO ALL THE HOUSE MARTINS GO? No-one really knows where they go in winter. Some birds have been found almost frozen, leading some people to think that they spend much of winter high high up in the sky where we can't see them. What's your theory?
When couples start dating they can be really agressive with eachother.
House Martins are found usually around houses in and around towns and villages.
They feed on the wing, eating insects. You can often tell them by their cute farting call: 'prrtt'.
They come home to nest in the UK in April, often feeding over wetlands for a while before returning to their traditional nest sites.
House Martins will head off to their winter home in September and October. They migrate to upland areas of Africa south of the Sahara ... or do they?
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