My first decent photos of this species. I’m gobsmacked by their beauty.
1/3200, f/6.3, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM @ 360mm, not baited, set up or called in
Yesterday morning in the mountains I found what may be a small colony of nesting Violet-green Swallows. Apparently one or more pairs were nesting in the cavity of this large, broken and decaying cottonwood branch, as evidenced by the fact that multiple swallows were fighting over it. Sometimes viciously.
I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve seen (or at least recognized) Violet-green Swallows in my lifetime and I’d never taken any keeper photos of them so of course I made an effort to improve my miserable track record. The shooting was tough – they were side-lit, the shooting angle was fairly steep and annoying shadows from myriad twigs and branches were being cast almost everywhere. All I could do was try.
1/6400, f/5.6, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
Even in the sidelight I was blown away by their distinctive markings and beautiful colors when the light hit them just right.
1/2000, f/6.3, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
This ledge or shelf to the left of the cavity entrance was one of their favorite perches. Typically they’d hang from it and look backwards for incoming swallows. If one came in they’d sometimes fight briefly but the fights were very difficult to photograph well in this side light..
Just as often there would be no fighting and the hanging swallow would eventually take off, which sometime meant…
1/2000, f/6.3, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
the takeoff was upside down and backwards. Immediately after takeoff they’d twist in the air and turn right side up but by then I’d lose focus on them or they were out of frame.
But I kept trying and eventually I came close to getting what I was after.
1/2500, f/5.6, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
This is a different swallow a few moments later. ‘He’s’ far enough away from the tree to be out of its shadows so he’s better lit and his spectacular colors really pop, even though he isn’t quite as sharp as I’d like.. “Violet-green” Swallow indeed.
I’m itching to get back here and try to photograph these swallows in better light. Who knows what a different light angle might do for their colors.
Audubon called this species “the most beautiful swallow within the limits of the United States” but I think ornithologist William Leon Dawson said it best. While writing his account of Violet-green Swallows Dawson searched for sufficient praise by saying “If we lavished any superlatives on the tree swallow, we regret it now … we need all our superlatives for present use.”
Ron
Outstanding photo of this beautiful swallow, you nailed it. Love opening you page everyday.
Wonderful photos, Ron! So often, the violet on the rump isn’t visible, too. One of the greatest pleasures…now that I’m used to it…is hearing them twittering their dawn song starting about 4:30am this time of year! They wheel and swoop around our house, in groups of 5-10, twittering at rapid speed as they fly. The performance only lasts maybe a half hour, but I’ve learned to enjoy it then go back to sleep!
Splendid! Splendid! Splendid! The Peacock of the swallow world (hopefully, they’re not quite as mean. Or loud. 😉 ). I am grinning from ear to ear as I scroll though your shots. I can only imagine your glee in getting them! 😀
No question Marty, it was pretty darn fun. Challenging but fun.
Sensational Ron! Thanks for sharing!
Charlotte Norton
Thanks, Charlotte.
Gob smacked. Flabberghasted too. Love that final quote as well.
Many, many thanks.
Thank you, EC.
What a beautiful little swallow! Congratulations on this lovely photos, Ron!
Thanks, Melanie.
They are a beautiful swallow. This is our most common swallow in town. A pair was checking out a nest box in our backyard but they were also checking out a gourd in our neighbors yard that was used last year. Tree Swallows become a bit more common once you leave the urban area. Having Violet-green Swallows chattering overhead is one of my signs that spring has arrived.
That’s fascinating, Dan! I’m really curious about where you live with the Violet-greens. How incomparably more delightful than urban pigeons and House Sparrows!
They are definitely a delightful treat to have around. I live in Eugene, Oregon. Violet-greens are very much a western swallow but these swallows are common in many urban areas of the far west. The white over the eye and on each side of the rump easily distinguish it from the Tree Swallow, our other common swallow with bright white undersides. That nice green color often just looks dark when in flight, depending upon the light.
Violet-green Swallows in town. Now that would be a huge treat!
Ditto Arwen and Kathy’s comments. And you had me at ‘gobsmacked.’
Kathleen, I rarely use that word but it seemed appropriate with these swallows.
WOW! Grinning ear to ear! 😒😄 Don’t believe I’ve ever seen them – they ARE beautiful! Swallows in general can be tough to track and these sure upped the degree of difficulty. Our “Bridge Swallows” – guessing technically Cliff Swallows are back.
“Here comes the sun” (ear worm starting) this morning. GREAT mood lifter even knowing it will reveal the extent of the freeze damage in a day or 2….😉
Judy, I suspect you’re right about your “Bridge Swallows” being Cliff Swallows.
And good luck to you and Joe, and to all the farmers up there, with your freeze damage.
Great catch, they are beautiful and hard to photograph.I do hope they stay where you spotted them so you can have a retry. Violet-green Swallows are one of the joys of many around Calf Creek area in Utah.
April, I remember seeing a few of them years ago at Upper Calf Creek Falls.
Great pictures. Wonderful to see why they have violet in their name. I have seen the bird, but not the violet color. Thanks.
Thanks, Lauie.
Absolutely beautiful! Thanks for showcasing a bird I have never seen. In fact I didn’t even know there was such a species. Your last photo really shows those colors beautifully!
Thank you, Kathy.
I was gob-smacked by their beauty when recently the first Violet-green was brought to my rehabilitation facility. Between the incredible colors, the tiny sleek body, the long graceful sweeping wings, the contrast with perfect white line, it is perfection itself. I tried to imagine how the pinhead black eyes experience its world, at a speed and detail that make it normal to catch a mosquito in flight, yet allow it to see its way over thousands of miles during migration. Whoever imagined that humans are some pinnacle of evolution has never met a Violet-green Swallow.
You always bring an interesting and often unique perspective with your comments, Mikal. You’ve done it again.
Outstanding Ron. We have hundreds at two of our lakes and in the early morning they are flying everywhere. Many nest in tree cavities of the same size that Acorn Woodpeckers use. I have never come upon them using a cavity the size of this one, but would imagine they are here. We have so many they can’t possibly all be nesting in small cavities. They are most always in motion, but a few times I have come upon them covering small snag trees in numbers of anywhere from 50 to 75. In the light as you have gotten them here the Violet-greens are very attractive birds.
We also have the Barn and Northern Rough-winged, but the VG are by far the more attractive.
Great job – very sharp and not an easy task considering how often and how rapidly they move.
I envy you all your Violet-green Swallows, Everett. I sure don’t come across them very often.
Such rich colors! I guess all my shots of them were in the shade when we rented a cabin in the Colorado Rockies, so I never appreciated their beauty. Really interesting takeoff maneuvers.
“Such rich colors”
Agreed, Ken. In the past when I’ve seen some of the photos of others that show these colors I would often wonder if the photographer had faked the colors , at least to some degree, during processing. But I made no color adjustments on these images, none at all.
WOW! What a great shot that shows the Violet color of the “fan” tail, that with my vision,fades to the tip; yet the Green seems to terminate rather abruptly.
Thanks, Donald.
Yes a gorgeous bird, thx for showing us just how gorgeous they truly are! the entire swallow family reminds me of the WWII’s Spitfires zooming around in aerial acrobats.
By coincidence I saw and heard some of these birds yesterday. They were on a pond surrounded by dense forest, so the colors didn’t pop like your photos show. Their color reminds me of the iridescent hues of hummingbirds but they don’t change with the angle of light. I’ll have to consult Thor Hansen’s “Feathers” for a possible explanation.
“they don’t change with the angle of light”
Lyle, it’s my experience that they actually do change with the angle of light.
Terri, I was with these swallows again this morning, for longer this time. After a while I developed a very sore neck trying to follow them around with my lens.
The Dawson quote is hysterical. And it demonstrates, for me, the need for more words. 🙂 these are gorgeous birds.
“it demonstrates, for me, the need for more words”
I often think the same thing when I’m writing my blog posts.