Richard & Diane Van Vleck - Personal Pages

Barn Swallow

Hirundo rustica

NEST: Mud nest plastered on beams and walls in old barns and other outbuildings and under bridges. Straw or horsehair are incorporated into the nest, which is lined with feathers.

EGGS: Usually 4-5, white with brown and lilac spots, .8" long.

INCUBATION: 13-17 days

FLEDGE: 18-23 days

HABITAT: Farmland, marshes, widespread in open country.

DISTRIBUTION: Cosmopolitan species, found on all continents except Australia.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

Open a door or window in suitable outbuildings.
Provide artificial nest cups in structures lacking rough surfaces. If an outbuilding is not available, place nest cups outside, under the eaves of a garage or shed. Be sure the nest will be well protected from sun and rain.
Provide a mud tray near the nesting site and keep the mud wet during nest building.
Offer ground egg shells in a jar lid feeder on a post.
During unusually cold wet weather, offer small insects in a feeder placed in the swallows' flight path inside the building. Normally there is absolutely no need to offer supplemental food to swallows or any other species.
Avoid using pesticides on your garden and lawn: rely on birds and beneficial insects instead.
Do not knock down nests after the swallows leave. They will be reused the following year.

Start a barn swallow colony this summer

order artificial nest cups for barn swallows

Nestbox video cameras view and record the action in your nestboxes this summer

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Attracting barn swallows with artificial nest cups
2010 Update	the flicker drum
the flicker nest box	the sliding hole cover trap
nest box video 2001-2010	2010 Barn Owl nesting
Observations and studies using nest box camera	starling and house sparrow traps
2005 brown thrasher nest cam	2005 purple martin gourd cam
2004 Carolina wren nest cam	2004 European starling nest cam
2004 gray squirrel nest cam	2006 polygamous barn owl nest cam
2010 Northern Flicker nest cam	2010 Kestrel nest cam
2010 flicker nestbox log	2010 Carolina Wren nest cam
2003 barn owl nest cam	2001 American Kestrel nest box cam
2002 American Kestrel nest box cam	2001 Yellow Shafted Flicker nest box cam
2002 Yellow Shafted Flicker nest box cam	2005 Yellow Shafted Flicker nest box cam
Eastern Bluebird nest box cam	Tree Swallow nest box cam
Carolina Chickadee nest box cam	house wren nest cam
Barn Swallow nest cam	Chimney Swift nest cam
Attracting barn swallows	other nestboxes in use
Entire site index Please check here if you can't find something	email to Richard & Diane
American Artifacts articles	American Artifacts catalog

barn owl American kestrel purple martin barn swallow Eastern bluebird
tufted titmouse Eastern phoebe yellow shafted flicker tree swallow chimney swift

house wren big brown bat Carolina wren brown thrasher catbird

Eastern wood-pewee . . .

barn owl	American kestrel	purple martin	barn swallow	Eastern bluebird
tufted titmouse	Eastern phoebe	yellow shafted flicker	tree swallow	chimney swift
house wren	big brown bat	Carolina wren	brown thrasher	catbird
Eastern wood-pewee		.	.	.