Tree Swallows at Cockroach Bay

I always love to watch Tree Swallows come in to roost for the night. It is an amazing spectacle of nature! I got the word that they were at Cockroach Bay which is about and hours drive from my home. It is near Ruskin, Florida. It is hard to film these birds coming in for the night as they are very small and it happens just before it gets dark. The sounds of the birds is much louder than I can capture on this video. This was just and amazing sight! If you ever hear of this happening near you - GO!

I also had the great honor to accompany several research student from Cornell University when they were capturing Tree Swallows and banding them for research. This doesn't harm the birds in any way. In this first picture you can see the net they had set up.

 

They would get them out of the net and then would measure them and weight them. They would then put a tiny band on one of there legs, so if they are ever caught again they will know more about them. They actually did catch one with a band on it and they were very excited about this. They think it was the only one ever caught in Florida with a band on it.

You can see how small they are.

After they are done with their research they release the birds back into the wild. 

This is one of my favorite bird pictures!

100% my original work! Copyright 2018 ® Mark Vance Photography

 I am an award winning photographer and filmmaker. Many of my pictures have been used in TV Shows and Feature Films, such as "Zero Dark Thirty", "NCIS Los Angeles" and "The Walking Dead".

Many of my bird pictures and videos have been used by The National Audubon Society and Sarasota Audubon and used on several TV shows.  Enjoy!