You may recall that last summer I had a problem of birds sitting on the ledge above the front door and pooping all over the place, well not all over, just in front of the door. I determined that they were barn swallows a common bird that hangs around people and their human structures so they can build nests in them (thus the barn part of their name). The nest look like this.
If you are wondering how I happen to have a picture of a barn swallow nest it is because it is built in the upper corner of the thing that covers the front porch and door. I noticed this last spring and at that time pulled it down, (it is about 25 feet off the ground). I didn’t think much more about it except Mary said that that is a lucky bird and there is some top secret thing in the nest that if you are some Chinese person you are suppose to eat. A few weeks ago I noticed that it had been rebuilt. I didn’t do anything about it at that time under the mistaken assumption that it was abandoned. A week or so ago I noticed that there were birds in it and that it was then too late to pull down. So the birds grew and I decided that there were 4 (although as they left the nest over the last couple days I think the real number was 5.) I could count them here.
This was the only way I could see them because as soon as I opened the door or approached from outside the adult birds would start flying around in buzzing mode sending up warnings and the young birds wold duck down and hide in the nest. Now the problem with this is once again poop. I can’t find a study to confirm it but the barn swallow has the highest ratio of poop to body weight in the known universe. Also, apparently the first rule that is taught a young bird is don’t poop in the nest but stand up on the edge and poop over the side. As a result the ledge under the nest and the front porch have about 248 tons of bird poop collected. This generated another great mystery that, since I am not a lepidopterist, I have no answer for. I noticed the other day that there is one brand of butterfly that flocks to this collected bird poop like old folks flock to the “all you can eat”.
Yesterday and today it appears that they have left the nest for good and soon I will need to clean this mess up. I’ll leave you with the photo that will be the envy of all great wildlife photographers. I can’t tell you how I got this picture, trade secret, but I outsmarted the birds and their stupid warnings.
