To be quite honest, I’m not entirely convinced this call is directly associated with courtship, but under the circumstances it’s hard to think what else it might be about.
Ok, so here’s the context:
It’s early Autumn. I’m sitting on the veranda at home enjoying a morning coffee with the audio recorder handy. Suddenly these two welcome swallows zoom in and sit on the clothesline not far from where they built a beautifully crafted mud nest last Summer. After a bit of light banter between them, the female flies to her nest and sits in its little cup. Instantly she explodes into the crazy twittering voice I caught in my recording. All the while, the partner remains silent, just watching her in what may have been adoration or bemusement…I’m clutching at straws here. It’s not nesting season for another 6 months, but her calling sure seems to be connected somehow with courtship and pair-bonding. It was clearly directed at her partner and she only let rip like this when she was on, or near, the old nest.
So, until someone disabuses me of my mistaken assumptions, I’m putting the call into the courtship voice category! Whatever it is, in my opinion it’s one of the most unworldly sounds of any songbird!
Welcome Swallow photo: Andrew Turbill.