Barn Swallows (Porch Swallows)

One of the first birds we saw for our Big Year was the Barn Swallow.  What made that sighting so easy is that we have two active nests on our front porch.  The fourth and fifth broods are soon to fledge from nests located on our porch pillars.

When they first arrived this spring, they nested in another nest that is attached to our house.  An American Robin was using one of their nests on a porch pillar, so after they fledged, the Barn Swallows again nested in it.

Bill and I often talk about moving, but (yes, this sounds crazy) we’re often concerned that new owners of this house might not welcome and appreciate our nesting Barn Swallow population.  With it comes dives to our heads and bird droppings on our porch.  Those midair bombs also occasionally land on our vehicles and our front door, but it also brings a beautiful and up close view of an amazing little bird.  

Barn Swallows winter in South America and make an incredible journey over the Gulf of Mexico twice a year.  They tend to nest in the same place, year after year.  We were thrilled to find them already living on our porch when we moved here.   We wait for them each spring and are excited when they make it back to our porch.   

Not everyone, though, enjoys having resident Barn Swallows.  My dad, who called them “porch swallows,” cut short lengths of black garden hose and placed them on his porch to discourage the birds from nesting there.  Even after we shared with him that Barn Swallows provide insect control, eating thousands of mosquitoes and other pesky insects, he still hoped the birds would believe that snakes were on the porch and they would nest elsewhere.  It didn’t work, though; they were smart enough to know it was a trick and continued to happily nest there.

We had an amazing porch on the back of our Illinois home and we’d see a few scouts every year, checking it out, but they never settled down there, so I was always envious of my dad’s situation...and he was equally envious of ours.

Now, we finally have a home where they nest on our front porch.  We sit there most weekend mornings with cups of coffee, watching them fly around the yard and swoop back into the nests with food for the nestlings.  They also perch on the nest-free porch pillars and swing to “serenade” us, which is lovely.  It’s quite a show.  

I do continue to keep my eye on the real estate market, hoping to find a place with much more land and a few outbuildings, but I feel responsible for the families that have chosen our porch to raise their young families. 

What if we sell our home to someone who doesn’t want nesting birds on their porch?  What if the nests are removed, and all other nesting attempts are thwarted?  Our moving from here brings with it greater concern for what lives here, and since I still haven’t found the perfect real estate available, I guess we’re staying put for a while.  It would be hard to leave such good coffee buddies.

Oh, and we had the following sightings over the past two days:

White-breasted Nuthatch
Northern Flicker
Killdeer
Northern Bobwhite
Great Blue Heron
Black Vulture
Chimney Swift
Canada Goose
Solitary Sandpiper
Gray Catbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Spotted Sandpiper
Eastern Bluebird

which brings us to 40 birds.  We saw the sandpipers at the Versailles State Park here in Indiana.  We only spent about 30 minutes there at dusk, but it was worth it!