June 3 nest check and here are the results:
63 active nests. Up from 61 on May 30.
33 Young hatched. Up from 0 on May 30
211 eggs.
A few of the findings
These two were expected to have hatched on the last nest check on May 30 but had not. Judging from the size, they may have hatched after the check that day. Four ChirpyNest cavities were added below this trendsetter house for 2018.
The castle house has not been well occupied the last several years. This cavity C-4 had one egg on May 30 and two today. Not much of a nest but since there are green leaves and I’ve seen the SY parents entering the compartment I think the nest is being tended. I choose not to add better nest material to this cavity. If I did and the eggs didn’t hatch I would wonder if that was the reason. By the same token by not adding better nest material, if the nest failed I will wonder if I could have made a difference. In cases like this I “ let nature be nature”.
These five young are in a compartment two cavities above the one shown in the next picture that houses a pair of tree swallows. In established Purple Martin colonies tree swallows will occasionally raise a brood amongst the martins. Usually the TS are evicted when trying to set up with established martins. This pair actually was evicted from another cavity but was not when they set up in this one.
If one is trying to attract martins for the first time tree swallows CAN NOT be allowed to claim a cavity. There is protocol at the Purple Martin conservation Association website to follow in establishing a colony that allows one to handle the tree swallow/ martin situation.
The feathers lining the nest is a sure sign of a tree swallow nest. I don’t know where they find all the white feathers but in twenty plus years it’s always been white feathers used.
This egg was hatching as I did the nest check. Both halves of the shell are still in the nest and the baby is still in one of the halves. The parents will remove the shell pieces but if one of the halves caps one of the unhatched eggs it can prevent the egg from hatching. If you notice the middle egg, you will see that it is capped with one of the halves from the hatched egg. I removed this cap before moving on to the next cavity.