I just came across this beautiful scene today but was only armed with a digital camera, and the pictures are terrible because the low light caused a slow shutter speed and i didnt think at the time. But i'm pretty sure these are house martins, they are in an area that is swarming with house martins and if you look closley you can see the tail beginning to fork. My friend thinks the way there is 5 or 6 of them all sitting like this suggests that they are not long fledged but i'm not sure. Can anyone tell me if i am correct about any of this? thank you
They are baby Swallows. You can see the face pattern, with orangey chin and forehead patch, in those that don't have their back to the camera, eg the righthand bird in pic 2. House Martins would show white rumps and chins/lower part of cheeks.
Their colours are more muted than adult Swallows, and they have not yet grown their tail-streamers. They are recently fledged, and are sitting around waiting for a parent to show up with some food. Here's a pic of a similar brood that we photographed in France last June:
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