Barn Swallows abandon the barn for the hill

A recent walk on the beach towards Crane Neck revealed a whole community of barn swallows that have made their mud nests right in the side of an eroded hill. They are very ingenious little birds with excellent taste in real estate. I guess they figured that Mother Nature made that hillside fall down for a reason and it would now make their lives easier. Why bring the mud someplace to build a nest when they can just burrow into the hillside? Their little homes remind me of the Native American cliff dwellers. The birds are very protective and when you walk by they dive bomb and fly around trying to distract you away from the nests. If you love nature, it’s definitely worth a walk on the beach to observe their hillside community.