Where to see 1000s of North America's largest swallow species in flight

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Many residents around the Austin area may be well aware of the city's large bat population, with nightly viewings near the South Congress Bridge, but the city is also home to another flying animal -- the Purple Martin.

A roost with thousands of the birds is in Round Rock, in the 2600 block of La Frontera Blvd. The birds are out every morning and night, but the Travis County Audubon has hosted watch parties for decades.

Shelia Hargis, a Travis County Audubon volunteer since 1997, said that the birds are an amazing sight and a "spectacle."

"These are birds that are very acrobatic in the air, they can fly really well. They catch their food in the air, they can drink and kind of bathe in the air," Hargis said.

The Purple Martin is North America's largest species of swallow and an excellent flier, Hargis said. They congregate in huge numbers at "conspicuously open situations" to breed following migration.

"If you have 1,000, 10,000 or 100,000 other birds with you, then your chances of being the one that gets eaten by the hawk or the owl is much less than if it's just you on your own and against the predator," Hargis said. "They'll stay there for maybe a couple of weeks, then they start to head south back to South America."

The next viewings are on July 26 and 27 from 8:00 to 9:00 p.m. The Travis County Audubon recommends bringing water, binoculars, a chair, and either a hat or umbrella.

"Let's just say with 100,000 birds circling above you, things fall from the sky from those birds," Hargis said. "But we tell people even if you do get pooped on, it's really not that messy. And it's good luck."