Swallows Checking out a Nesting Box
Bird Box
Those who know me may be surprised by this week’s post – but I did have help!
My carpentry skills, or lack thereof, are well known so when I decided to make bird nesting boxes to put around our property, well let’s just say some people chuckled. Fortunately, I have a friend Brian who is a much more capable builder, and he and I spent an afternoon putting together a few nesting boxes for the local swallows.
Another friend, who volunteers with Ducks Unlimited, had sent me plans for the boxes and quickly Brian and I had several made. I took two of them home and then placed them on 5-foot-high poles facing south/southeast as instructed, and then waited.
Yesterday, the efforts paid off, and three swallows came around the box nearest the house and were flitting in and out inspecting the box as a possible nesting site.
Tree Swallows like these, and other birds, can use a hand as old growth wood with a place for a good hole (cavity nesting it’s called technically) is becoming harder and harder to find. Since we live with our ponds right out front, and closeness to water is a necessity for the swallows, the thought that our place could be a good one for the boxes was only natural.
A wonderful thing to help the birds out and watch them appreciate the new home!
