Swallows in the Moon

Alicia Hayden

Where do you go? He pondered day and night,
turning over rocks, sticks, and stones;
Peering into the bottom of lakes,
shining torches into caves and hollows in trees.
But their swept back wings and kite trail tails 
were nowhere to be seen.

Where are you hiding? He whispered to 
the empty skies. The silent meadows,
now devoid of flowers and the hum of summer bees.
The first frost came, and realising they weren’t wandering
between barns or roof eaves any longer,
he turned his nose back to the books.

I’ve solved it! He exclaimed to nobody in particular,
jumping up from his desk with unparalleled delight.
Just like Galileo has found valleys and mountains on the moon
I am certain swallows migrate there each winter season!

The Science

This poem is based on the fantastical and completely false conclusions of Charles Morton, who, before 1680, declared that swallows migrated to, and lived on, the moon during winter months; for he could find no evidence of them in England during the winter.

The Poet

Alicia Hayden is a young, award-winning poet and artist from North Yorkshire, who has just completed her undergraduate degree in Biological Sciences from Oxford University. She loves to use art, be that words, illustrations, photo, or film, to showcase the beauty and threats faced by the natural world. She self-published her first illustrated wildlife poetry book, Rain before Rainbows, in 2020 – of which, 50% of the profits go to the wildlife hospital Tiggywinkles; and was awarded the inaugural Ingrid Beazley Award for her winning piece ‘When the Whale Sang’ in the David Shepherd Wildlife Artist of the Year 2021.

Next poem: The Evolution of Life by Vandana Sharma