Late Swallows
Swallows were feeding their fledglings in a Hertfordshire cottage garden on October 8th, which is the latest date in the annals of this cottage where swallows have been watched with great interest for many years. It is natural to pity these late broods and to consider what happens to them. I doubt whether pity is called for. The rapidity of development is astonishing in many birds, especially, I think, migrant birds, and the swallow comes very nearly at the top of the list. It was recorded by an observer this year that young reed- buntings leave the nest within ten days of hatching, and birds that live on the wing increase• in power a good deal more quickly if food is abundant and the weather favourable. A hard and early frost may prove fatal to such youngsters, but if the two interpolated summers of late autumn duly arrive and are not separated by unusual frosts, these swallows should be strong enough to make a successful journey to the far south with some of the later bands of emigrants.
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