Following up on an earlier posting questioning whether Violet-green Swallows
might use a swinging (suspended) nestbox:

A nestbox cobbled together from the hollowed-out section of tree trunk and
securely suspended from the outer limber limb of a birch tree was a
'dancing' nestbox if not quite swinging. It was fastened to the limb by
crimping the hook on a salvaged wire hanging (plant) basket unit, to fit
tightly over a limb. This nestbox, formerly used by the House Wrens who may
have been the nemisis of the nesting attempts in previous years of V-g
Swallows and B-c and C-b Chickadees - it was relocated from beneath a large
Dougfir to the Birch tree in front of the house. There, Violet-green
Swallows swooped in under the limbs and checked it out, eventually
accepteding it and 'moving-in'!

Rather than swing, this nestbox, suspended on the three wires fastened to
the top of the nestbox, 'danced' with the limb, and on one occassion quite
literally was 'tossed about' during the high winds of a late spring
thunderstorm. The Violet-green Swallows were not dissuaded, and kept right
on with their task.

The fledging seemed to have taken place over several weeks, which astounded
me. The nest box sides were later found to be literally coated in bird
droppings such as one would find in a nestbox that had been used as a roost
over the winter. This fact seems to confirm my belief that I witnessed an
extended fledging period. Did some eggs actaully incubate in the heat, even
though the bird was not on the nest except to lay eggs? I've read of this
happening with Eastern Bluebirds.

'Cobbling' nestboxes together, as I've done, leaving no way of monitoring
them during the nesting season, is not recommended. Easy access for
monitoring provides for gaining an understanding of what is going on and
what you might do diffently in the future to aid a successful nesting. I
would strongly encourage the use of nestboxes built from plans such as those
from NABS or WDFW. Don't make maintenance and monitoring a chore, either
buy or build your nestboxes based on reputable designs!

A successful nesting of V-g Swallows is a joy! It brings back fond memories
of my father's nestboxes and our yearly Violet-green Swallow visitors.

John - Happily sharing space with Bewicks Wrens (displacing the House Wrens)
!
**** ************ ****
John Allinger
Hockinson, Clark County, Washington
-- (Southwest Washington)
Elevation: 500 feet / 160 meters
Latitude: _45_45_N
Longitude: _122_30_W
< nhojregnilla at hotmail.com >

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