Sunbathing Swallows of Oceanside

Some people love the hot summer days and spend their free time at the beach. I love summer too but now I am into taking bird photos instead of slathering on the tanning lotion to get that tan and roast on the hot sand of the sunny beach. Today I drove to Oceanside on one of the hotter days of the year looking for bird subjects instead of a tan. 

The traffic was heavy with lots of trucks towing their fishing boats to the harbor and carloads of kids and surfboards ready to have fun at the beach. As I crossed the road to get to the bridge that spans the San Luis Rey River mouth I noticed lots of dragonflies flying around. It's always a fun challenge to see if you can catch a shot of one in flight. Here is a shot of a pretty blue one that came into my camera frame. 

 

Walking over by the bridge I noticed the swallows swooping and flying by but always coming back to the same area. Looking around to see where they were flying to and to see if I could capture one in flight I was startled to find one land just below where I was standing. Here is my first shot of one of the swallows. It's a Barn Swallow, Hirundo rustica measures 6.75 inches with a wing span of 15 inches.

 

They always seem to be in constant motion but instead of flying off, the little juvenile just lay down on its side. He appeared to be resting and soaking in the sun. 

At first I thought that something was wrong with him but then a few more arrived and they all lay down and appeared to be sunbathing. Here are some shots of the Sunbathing Swallows of Oceanside. 

The sunbathing swallows appeared to get pretty warm and soon had their mouthes open to help cool them off but they still stayed baking in the heat. 

 

A close-up of the sunbathing swallow.

Here is a shot of another one that just landed. It appeared to be quite young.

Still had baby beaks. 

 

In an observation paper by Charles A Blem and Leann B Blem of the Department of Biology at Virginia Commonwealth University, they believed that the swallows may be sunning themselves to get vitamin D and also to rid themselves of ectoparasites. Maybe to get relief from heavy molting was also mentioned. 

Getting warm enough this one leaves for a while. 

 

But another comes in and soaks in the heat. 

Top view of one that just landed. 

 A squabble over the best sunning spot. 

 

 Soon they settle down and lay down. 

Both panting and fanning the tail out. 

Lying on his side he soaks up the heat. They almost seem like they are in a trance-like mode. 

It is really strange to see these active swallows lying down and sunning themselves. If you didn't know what was going on, you would think there was something wrong with these birds. 

 

If there were any parasites on their feathers, they probably would be cooked by now. 

Many would fan their tail out but not their wings. 

Some just lay there like they were dead. 

All the clicking sounds of my camera did not bother the sunbathers.

One just landed on the cement wall right below where I was standing. 

Looks up but decides to stay. 

 Soon, he is panting too. 

 A good look at this beauty. 

A beautiful bird. The Barn Swallows are the most graceful of the swallows in flight. Notice the long forked tail.

 

This one shows off his tail. 

 

Looks like he may have some feather mites. The heat will surely make the parasite uncomfortable and leave the host or maybe die off . 

It is quite hot with the sun blazing down on the cement wall. This little guy is absorbing the heat panting to control his internal temperature.

I walk past and get a few more shots. He sees me but stays put. 

One last shot and I have to head for home. What an interesting observation this has been. My first look at the "sunbathing swallows" of Oceanside. 

Stay cool everyone!