Kathleen Snyder
Our nest box volunteers have been hard at work over the last three months. Starting at the beginning of April, teams of volunteers have been visiting five of our eleven sites, watching and recording which species are using which boxes that SSBA has provided. There is drama to behold as the birds compete for their preferred “houses”. Unfortunately, this year has brought more than the normal number of fatalities of adult swallows. This has occurred mainly at Glacial Heritage Preserve. We are not sure what is causing adult birds to die inside of the nest boxes but we have reported the problem to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and decommissioned the affected boxes for two weeks – the length of time that Avian Flu remains viable on surfaces. We don’t know if Avian Flu is responsible but we err on the side of caution.
On a cheerier note, we have many Western Bluebirds, Tree Swallows, and Violet-green Swallows raising families at our sites. By the beginning of July, these chicks will have fledged and we will have cleaned out the boxes in hopes that a second nesting will take place. Bluebirds are known for a second clutch and there are still swallows that haven’t nested yet and will try now. In September and October, our volunteers will visit all 170 boxes to clean and repair them before winter sets in. Then we sit back and count the days until April arrives again.
Photo: Western Bluebird by Lisa Genuit
