Our swallows, 3 pairs are doing fine, newly fledged chicks zooming about happily.
Not so good for the house martins. They arrived back safely and this year built a wonderful, strong nest. One chick fell out and died the day it hatched, but others hatched successfully, lots of cheeping coming from the nest. Then a couple of days ago, the nest was on the ground, ripped apart, presumably by a woodpecker or similar, and the chicks were gone, parents too. The parents came back today, all happy and chirping again, but it must be too late for them to start again, as they would have to build a new nest. This pair have had no luck raising young, but this year their nest was so good we thought they would be successful.
We need to think up a new plan to protect them from predators next year.