Swallows are one of my favourite songbirds. Not only are they among the most supremely skilled aviators of the animal kingdom, and not only do they nest under the eaves of my verandah (setting the closest bird next to the house record every year) but their voice can only be described as not-of-this-world.
The recording I’ve added below captures a ‘conversation’ between a female Welcome Swallow who is inspecting her freshly prepared nest (prior to laying eggs) and her life-long male partner who waits on a nearby rope clothesline for further instructions (I’m just guessing). The high-pitched chittering is so wonderfully frenetic and forceful it seems to literally burst from their little pointed bills!