A Gulp of Swallows?

[tmcg]

All of a sudden, we have a population of swallows. I'm not sure what the collective noun is for swallows, but we counted twenty-three today, hanging out on a phone line--not a huge population, but remarkable given that I hadn't seen a single one here in the few years I've been paying attention to birds. I'm not even certain they're swallows, since I can't find them in the Audubon bird book, but they fit the general description. Whatever they are, I love them. They're arrows in flight, and fearless, and they chatter delightfully. I hope they eat insects, because we've been plagued by more mosquitoes than usual this year. I'm glad they're here, and I hope they stay.

Comments

Collective noun?

[(Anonymous)]

Delving into the depths of my collegiate wildlife biology memories, I seem to recall it being a gulp of swallows.

Re: Collective noun?

[terrymcgarry.livejournal.com]

Wow! If it's not, it should be. What a great term.