If they are just building it I would absolutely take it down and put something there to prevent their rebuilding it. If you leave them to it it will impact your life for weeks. I had robins do the same thing on my back patio where I take the dogs in and out- high prey drive dogs. Unfortunately for me I did not see it until there were eggs present and so I let them run their course. Long story short I had to fence off the area to keep the dogs from going at the babies (I have extremely large dogs who can stand on their back legs and get at things six feet high), and as it was hard concrete underneath I padded the floor for the moment they jumped. I also had to extend fencing to accommodate the babies making their way to cover. It was exhausting, but everything worked out and I got a lovely series of photos right up until the last moments before they jumped out. The only positive I can think of aside from their all living was that it forced me to learn a great deal about baby robins so I could stay one step ahead of their development in terms of keeping them safe. I did not find the mother to be at all territorial towards me- I kept my regular in and out schedule. I did provide mealworms from time to time to try and help keep her healthy. So unless you are prepared to spend time and energy devising ways to keep them safe, nip it in the bud and remove the nest. The last photo was about ten minutes before the last ones to leave jumped out.

I just stumbled upon this post as I try to prevent the recurring problems from Barn Swallows again this year. Unfortunately, the image is no longer available and I cannot see how you hung the netting. We have a colony of Barn Swallows that roost at our apartment building each year. The landlord hates them, but a former tenant had posted signs everywhere about how it was illegal to remove the nests. It was only through my own research that I realized it was only illegal while eggs or babies were in the nests, and those tenants moved out this winter. In addition to nesting on top of our buildings lights, covered walkways, and eaves, my apartment and the one next door have outdoor entrances from our gorgeous courtyard and patio which have covered stairwells. Each year, the swallows fly through these two stairwells like its the Lincoln Tunnel, dive bombing anyone who tries to walk on the stairs. They build their nests on the outlet boxes or porch lights. The first summer we lived here, I thought it was really neat to have such a close view of their lives, as I would often sit on my steps and could watch the babies as they grew, taking great care to be quiet and non-threatening. However, I also found that my porch steps and exterior wall were covered with bird droppings. They are also very very noisy when there is an entire colony of them outside of your windows. All of the "teenage" birds hang out in one of our courtyard trees outside of my window, which my cat loves but can actually drown out any conversation or television in our living room. Then I experienced what I thought were bed bugs in our house. I had tiny bites head to toe and could constantly feel them crawling on me despite rarely being able to see anything. It got so bad that I was getting the bites infected from itching all the time, and I couldn't sleep because I could feel the bugs crawling on my skin as soon as I tried to relax. I finally captured a few and took them to the University's Department of Entymology, who identified them as bird mites. That experience was HORRIFIC. I was ready to burn our entire building down after reading that the bird mites multiply much more quickly than bed bugs and are nearly impossible to remove. Luckily, the mites died off when the birds finally left for the season, but I can no longer sit outside on my wooden stairs because I fear contracting them again. The next spring, I tried the knock-down method, just on my own stairwell. I would open my screen door 2 inches and use a broom handle to knock down the nests up to 7 times a day. The swallows became very agitated, and and two attacked my daughter's head when she got home from school one of the days. I couldn't sit inside and repeat this process forever, though, and they got their nest up one day while I was off at a 12 hour work shift. The outlet covers they use are too high up to see into, and I knew that some other nests already had eggs, so I couldn't knock it down, more out of compassion than fear of charges. This will be our third summer here. Our elderly landlord has given up trying to prevent them from nesting even in the building entryways. I have removed my porch light cover so there is no solid surface to nest on, but the outlet box cover is too high up and I can't put a ladder on the stairs to reach it. I have considered trying to throw a cotton ball soaked with peppermint oil up there (it has worked in the past for mice and spider problems), or hanging a bunch of cut aluminum as a mobile at the top of the steps (I have heard that the reflections off the metal scare birds off), but I simply can't go through another year of this if those methods don't work. I saw that I could use something to create a 45% slope where the nest to prevent them, but again... getting up there is an issue. I am curious to see how you used the mesh. Could you please share the picture again?

I am new to bluebirding and I stopped by to ask a question, which you answered with your lovely pictures. I was wondering if it would be ok to use a regular hinge on a nestbox. I had a hard time removing a wasp nest and re-soaping the ceiling so I replaced the original screw-hinge with a regular hinge. I see you have a regular hinge on yours, and it seems to be working out pretty well for you. Thanks for posting those wonderful pictures.

What kind of nesting material? I would take out the new nesting material and make sure the nestlings are ok and just observe and make sure the nestlings are being fed. Do you have any idea on how old the nestlings are? Are they feathered yet? Good luck! Donna