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Help, I had barn swallows killed above my front door this morning.?
I moved into my house 4 years ago and a pair of barn swallow that had built a nest in the same spot and raised their young successfully. I took that nest down after their birds had grown. About 1 month ago the swallows returned and built a new nest as my wife's pregnancy period was ending. I took it as a good sign and I was very pleased.
My wife gave birth to our first child 2 weeks ago and we were looking forward to seeing the new birds.
The eggs apparently hatched some time recently (maybe last night?). My wife heard bird fighting earlier this morning, but I was unaware of the issue until I left my house this morning.
My neighbor told me a few months back that there was another bird that built a nest in his tree that did this when the swallows nested above his front door a few years ago. He removed predator bird's nest a few years ago and the problem was solved.
I have a number of questions. Will the swallows lay more eggs this season? What species of bird is the likely culprit (I live in Denton, TX)? The swallows built the current nest on a ledge and I suspect that made the nest vulnerable by creating enough space above the nest to where a presumeably larger bird could get in and attack the babies. I want to remove the ridge to prevent them from building a similar nest. Is that adviseable? Should I wait until they leave the nest? Will they abandon the nest now?
This hit pretty close to home. I appreciate any and all advice.
update: 3 of the 4 swallows were alive. I do not know if they were/are fatally injured. My mother-in-law put those birds back into their nest.
Will their parents acknowledge them? Will they survive?
What can I do to drive off the predator bird?
1 Answer
- Anonymous1 decade agoFavorite Answer
Yes, the parents should still come back and tend to the other chicks that were placed back into the nest. The predator could have been another bird, or a rodent. If you neighbor removed the active nest of a bird he believed to be a predator he actually broke the law. ALL wild native birds are protected by law..predator or not. You and your neighbor have no right harming native birds and trying to control nature!
Just let the birds be...the predator may or may not come back, but there is really nothing you can do to deter a natural predator. Anything you place out that might scare other birds away will also scare the nesting pair. You actually should not have removed their last nest as this particular species will re-use a nest over and over again. I would not suggest removing the ledge while this nest is active, too much disturbance can cause them to abandon. You can make adjustments after the babies have left the nest if you need to..but there is no guarantee this will make the nest safe against predators.
Source(s): me: ornithologist/wildlife biologist