Upstream Records | Swallows Return to My Home - A Tribute to Bird Lovers

From April 4th to 10th this year is the 39th Bird Watching Week. The annual 'Bird Watching Week' is not only a commitment to protect birds, but also an action to care for and spread ecological civilization concepts for the protection of wild animals. Two days ago, Mr. Zheng Guodong, who lives in Zheng Fruit Orchard, Yinglong Town, Nan'an District, Chongqing, made a surprising discovery: swallows had returned to his eaves.

Swallows have had a very high folk status in China since ancient times, not just because swallows are beneficial birds that capture pests. In ancient times, swallows were called 'dark birds' and 'purple swallows'. People not only did not object to swallows building nests under their eaves and living with humans, but they also welcomed swallows, with the meaning of 'purple east coming', 'prosperous children'.

Regardless of where swallows fly, they will return to their 'home' in northern China every spring, continuing to live with humans. This is what is known as 'swallows return to old piles', and they even consciously seek out the location of their nests from the previous year.

This also means that if there is a pair of swallows nesting under your eaves this year, they may return to your window next spring to find that nest.

Swallows have feelings of nostalgia and attachment to their old nests, so in China's ancient culture, swallows have always been linked to concepts of 'homesickness' and 'miss.