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--047d7bdca42e7772b204e18c9e0c Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Here is an interesting web site about Artificial Barn Swallow Nests<http://www.americanartifacts.com/smma/per/b4info.htm> On Mon, Jul 15, 2013 at 9:26 AM, <g4syth@staff.ednet.ns.ca> wrote: > Hi all, > > This is all very interesting, as both barn swallows and chimney swifts > are less numerous than most of us middle and older aged naturalists > remember from our past. > > When I grew up in Greenwich, Kings County NS there were barn swallows > nesting in most of the barns in our community. From the west moving > east: Murray Forsythe's barn had many nests, there were cattle but > this barn is now gone; Richard Forsyth's ( now Harold's ) there were > no cattle but swallows in many of the barns, they disappeared for a > number of years but have returned in smaller numbers; Lewis Legge, now > Stephen Legge, there were nests in all levels of the barn, cattle for > only a few years that I remember, no nests presently; My dad's, George > Forsyth's barn had barn swallows as I grew up, nests on three levels > in some years, we had no livestock, there haven't been nests for > twenty years; Lorna Huston, now Ivan Rafuse, a small modern garage, > had swallow nests, never had livestock, the birds entered under the > roll up door that was left open about four inches, these birds have > gone; Herb Johnson's barn had no livestock, but barn swallow nests on > two levels, this barn is now gone; Rhodes Hennigar's (now Doug), there > has been no livestock for many years, but there is a continuous > healthy population of barn swallows nesting on three levels of an old > barn on the property, there is a source on mud in an area where they > wash vegetables and fill farm machinery with water. > > In all of these cases the barns or garage are of wood construction, > they have openings that are accessible to the birds, even open > doorways, and there is a source of mud. The fact that livestock are > present I don't think is as important, livestock will almost guarantee > that there is mud, but if there is some other reason that mud is > available as at Doug Hennigar's they will still be attracted. > > About twenty years ago I remember poking my head into an abandoned > shed on the lower end of the Stewart Mtn Rd, in Lower Blomidon, there > was a barn swallow nest in this building and the adults swooped and > chattered as I looked inside the building. This was not a building > being used for any purpose by people, and it had not been used for > many years, but this pair of swallows found it attractive! > > I'm sure that the combination of conditions that attract barn swallows > to nest is known to barn swallows and might never be understood by all > of us. I also think that just as some of us find some areas attractive > for our living, and might not be attracted to other places, individual > barn swallow pairs might nest in conditions that are not necessarily > "typical". As important as nesting > is to barn swallow populations their time in Nova Scotia represents > only one quarter of the year, there must be many other impacts on > their population that are not related to nesting. > > In any case there is a relaxing pleasure in seeing barn swallows > swooping and coursing a lawn, hay field or pasture on a sunny summer > day, we should all be jealous of the freedom as they reel, in seeming > abandon, countering gravity as we are bound to our lawn chairs! > > > George E. Forsyth > > > Quoting "James W. Wolford" <jimwolford@eastlink.ca>: > > > Regarding the chimney swift, the history is a bit complex and of > > course the mathematics of this is/are unknown. Remember that before > > North Americans/Europeans built chimneys to which the swifts could > > adapt (which of course they did in spades), the main habitat for the > > swifts in North America and probably also in South America (wintering > > areas) was cavities in trunks and large branches of big trees that > > were old enough to have such fungus-or-other-related cavities. > > Needless to say, such habitats are long gone, and one wonders if > > humans and nature are capable of ever producing such again -- another > > question might be whether the swifts would ever evolve back to natural > > cavities? (Hopefully, artificial cavities/towers might eventually > > replace the lost habitats of old hollow trees and chimneys etc. with > > large enough openings for the entrance & exit of swifts. > > > > Another point to bring up is the foods of aerial insectivores like > > swifts, swallows, nighthawks, flycatchers, and ? and whether the > > likely problem with those insects might be amenable to any kind of > > corrective actions. We probably will never be able to show cause and > > effect for the declines of these birds. Another thing that has > > entered my mind is that agricultural chemicals are quite possibly > > parts of the problems, and they just might be affecting all sorts of > > kinds of biodiversity, other than flying insects. > > > > Cheers for now from Jim in Wolfville. > > > > Begin forwarded message: > > > >> From: Fritz McEvoy <fritzmcevoy@hotmail.com> > >> Date: July 11, 2013 3:18:42 PM ADT > >> To: NS NATURE <naturens@chebucto.ns.ca> > >> Subject: RE: [NatureNS] Barn Swallows and Chimney Swifts > >> Reply-To: naturens@chebucto.ns.ca > >> > >> Hi Rob and All, > >> I stand to be corrected here, but my understanding is that it > >> was not only the old barns that were required but that farming; > >> particularly the keeping of livestock; was also essential. The mud > >> and manure were used to build the nests and the insects the > >> animals attracted were a main food source. We lost our local > >> Barn Swallows shortly after the owners of the barns the swallows > >> used for nests, which are still here BTW, got rid of the last of > >> their cows. All the best. > >> Fritz McEvoy > >> Sunrise Valley, CB (near > Dingwall) > >> > >> > >> Date: Thu, 11 Jul 2013 09:25:49 -0700 > >> From: rrtwoods@yahoo.com > >> Subject: [NatureNS] Barn Swallows and Chimney Swifts > >> To: naturens@chebucto.ns.ca > >> > >> Not to take away from the rapid decline that these species and > >> others are experiencing, I have wondered did these two species > >> first benefit from mankind as the are both strongly associated with >