Can a single parent barn swallow raise babies?

17 years ago

Does anyone know? Each year we've had barn swallow babies fledged from a nest in the eaves of our front porch, but this year's couple have been extraordinarily aggressive about nest defense and one of the parent birds fell victim to our cat while dive bombing her.

That was about a week ago and the remaining parent bird has been feeding the babies diligently since. I've been making an effort to keep kitty in as much as possible.

Anyways the nest holds 5 baby birdies, and they do seem to be growing, but I don't know if their growth rate is normal. They do not appear weak at all. I am just wondering can one single parent bird manage to feed this brood enough to ensure they make it to adulthood. Does anyone know if this is possible. They must only be getting half the food they would get if both parents were feeding them. Might they just take longer to grow to fledging size with less food, but still reach maturity? I'm so hoping that the little ones survive to fly with the flock as their predecessors have in past years.

Here's a photo of a brood from two years ago. Hope this goes through...

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spedigrees z4VT
Original Author

17 years ago

As I wrote in my post, my reference was to domestic cats, not to feral or barn cats who live their lives without being fed or receiving immunizations, deworming, external parasite prevention, and other routine veterinary care.

I have precise first hand knowledge of what species my cats have killed over the past 40+ years and a good idea of how many of each because they bring their quarry home to my front porch and, being well fed, only occasionally do they eat one of their game animals. I could probably count on my fingers the number of birds my cats have killed over the past decades, and among these were a few English sparrows.

I would say that on average 6 to 11 baby barn swallows have fledged from nests on our front porch and eaves of the barn each year, despite the presence of our cat(s.) The parent bird who fell victim this year is the only swallow killed by one of our cats ever, so I'd say that the survival rate is highly stacked in favor of the swallows. (Seven on average x 40 some years is a large sum of swallows that have come into being on my felines' terrain.)

Toxoplasma gondii only poses a threat to developing fetuses and those with severely compromised immune systems. It is important that pregnant women avoid contact with litter boxes. Other than this caution, the risks posted on the inflammatory website you posted are highly exaggerated.

As I also stated, this is a moot point since my current kitty has only perhaps another year of going outdoors and I do not intend to replace her when she is gone. We will have to agree to disagree on this point.

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Comments (13)

lisa11310
17 years ago
My single Tree Swallow was able to fledge 3 of 6 babies (5 days old at the 2nd parents death) with terible wether and nearly no flying insects. How are yours doing today?
rachel_frome_ky
17 years ago
Good reason to keep cats indoors..they kill whatever they can, and they're good at it. Cats allowed outside account for 100s of millions of killed birds annually in the US according to the American Bird Conservancy

http://www.abcbirds.org/abcprograms/policy/cats/index.html
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spedigrees z4VT
Original Author
17 years ago
Thank you for the encouraging account, lisa. We are having good weather and flying insects abound right now, so I'm optimistic. Even if only 3 of "my" five make it, it will be a success of sorts.

The little ones seem ok today although no obvious growth since yesterday. They are all healthy and strong and make quite a chatter when mom (or dad) shows up with each meal.

Rachel, with due respect I think domestic cats (feral cats may be another matter) are a convenient scapegoat for conservancy groups. Having owned 6 indoor/outdoor kitties in the course of my nearly 60 years, my observation is that birds make up only a small percentage of their prey, with rodents reigning supreme. Human overpopulation and related urban spread along with climate change (caused in large part by the former) are most likely the real culprits in the demise of songbirds. The whole issue in my instance is rather a moot point since my current kitty will likely be my last and she is approaching her late teens (she is 16 now), at which point my cats stop wanting to leave the house and I stop letting them go out.

I do keep the cat indoors for the fledging period, but that is still several days away.

Our 4 barn swallow babies in the barn are out flying with the adult birds now, although they return still to the nest and barn rafters at night. I do hope the porch babies will fare as well.

Thank you again for the encouragement, Lisa. I was really hoping someone had first hand knowledge of a single parent bird managing to bring up their little ones. Now I know it can be done. I'll keep you all updated on "my" little ones' progress.
spedigrees z4VT
Original Author
17 years ago
I have wonderful good news to report! Yesterday afternoon we returned from an overnight visit to friends in NH, and found that the five baby swallows had grown to the point they were fairly popping out of the nest. If it hadn't been pouring rain I suspect yesterday would have been fledging day.

This morning I awoke to find only two babes still in the nest, and an hour later they were out of the nest, one perched atop the windchime and the other on the ledge that runs along the top of the porch. A short time later they were gone too. No little bodies on the steps below, so I assume all have successfully "found their wings."

Tonight will tell, when the whole family returns to sleep near or in the nest. I'm hoping all five little ones and their mom/dad will be back, and it seems likely at this point. Quite a feat for a single parent to raise 5 babies alone! The pair in our barn raised only 4. I love these little insect eaters and hope their population continues to flourish.
spedigrees z4VT
Original Author
17 years ago
All 5 swallow babies flew back to the porch for the night, accompanied by their single parent. The 5 little ones somehow managed to cram into their nest and the mama/papa birdie has settled in on the ledge next to the nest.

I'm so glad the little birds are off to a good start. I'm also amazed that this single bird was able to raise the whole brood to maturity. I had serious doubts that such a thing was possible.
rachel_frome_ky
17 years ago
You shrugged off cats as a danger to wildlife but their outdoor hunting also endangers humans. Cats are the only species to shed the dangerous parasite toxoplasma gondii in their feces which they get from eating wildlife.

http://www.tnrrealitycheck.com/barn_cats.asp

In a weird turn, like something from Star Trek, the parasite forces rats to seek out cats to complete the cycle for the parasite.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=9560048
jeanner
17 years ago
Thats great news spedigrees! I wish barn swallows would nest here - they come to visit occassionally but no nesters!
spedigrees z4VT
Original Author
17 years ago
Thank you jeanner. I hope some of your visitors decide to stay and raise a family. They are so entertaining to watch! They have an extended social network with families nesting near each other and all of them gathering on the powerlines to "visit." Especially in the fall when they gather to embark on their migration south.

We have a lot of open grass land (our horse pasture) and many insects, and I guess that is the optimal habitat for these birds. Also we have convenient spots in the eaves for nests and mud nearby at the brook to use for building material.

They do make an awful mess of the porch steps during their nesting period, but a bucket of hot water and bleach after they have all flown puts things to rights again.
kids4pets3mom
12 years ago
I just lost the mother due to my 7 month old kitty. I blame my husband who thought it was okay to leave the garage door open only 3-4 feet high for them to fly out of during the day. The bay was filled with lawn mowers which made it even more hazardous to maneuver. Sure enough, the kitty jumped up and grabbed her. I was furious! They are great flyers but when you make it easy for the cat. Jeez!
The father is no where to be seen at nite but returns to feed them during the day. I think they are fairly young. I don't hear him singing to his mate anymore and I did show him the dead bird by leaving it for him to find so he could figure out what happened. How will the babies stay warm? Will they make it? And yes. We have them in our 2 car garage and this is their 2nd season.
bluebirdbabe
12 years ago
depending on how old the babies are, they probably will not survive. Only the mother broods the babies. Dad will feed them, but mom keeps them warm. I have 4 cats, ALL dump off cats from irresponsible people. They are all indoor cats as they are natural born killers. Sorry for your loss, but cats should remain inside.

Karen
All about Amarillo
7 years ago
Ive had a very interesting experience with my Barn swallows this year. They returned, built a nest, laid 4 eggs, and the female began incubation. About 5 days before the hatching date, the female died, she seemingly disappeared. I thought the male was going to abandon the nest and eggs, but he continued incubation! i was astonished, 5 days later 1 egg hatched, the next day, another one did, even though only 50% of the eggs hatched, I'm still surprised that he took care of them. its been about 9 days since they've hatched and my two babies are doing well. One thing i have done is set out a dish of small mealworms, and as far from my observations, he's been using them. Im excited that they returned to me this year, and hoping that he finds a new mate for a second brood. Good luck barn swallow roommates! there are too many barn swallow haters out there, ill guess they'll have to deal with the flies and mosquitos ;)
Trista Cole
3 years ago
Yall gonna hate me for this but since you all are knowledgable or Barn Swallows i would like to stop them from making a nest by my door. ive tried removing the nest before they lay eggs in hooe they would move to another location. i dont want to hurt them, but i have a cat and dogs and i dont like them swooping at me or my pets. plus they make a nasty mess and i have chemicals etc and its just not working. Again i dont wanna kill or hurt the birds but i am not a fan of birds and would just like for them to relocate. TYIA

Can a single parent barn swallow raise babies?

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