# Cliff swallows often trespass into each other's nests. A male transports the mud in his bill back to his nest and adds it to the lip on the walls of the slowly forming cup-shaped structure. The nests were unveiled during the 2016 Swallows Day festival on March 19, a day-long celebration of the birds and the Mission held each year. American cliff swallows are very social. We are working with the Mission to try to restore cliff swallows to the site. The removal of nests will sometimes cause the birds to re-locate elsewhere. Once the birds return in the spring, no interference is allowed unless you receive a permit. We still do not understand completely why cliff swallows choose (or do not choose) particular places to live. Groups always tend to follow each other; if one is feeding on a big swarm, another will follow to scout out the area.This holds true for solitary feeding birds as well. Many cliff swallows have built their nests on the underside of the bridge.All birds within the colony are at the same stage of breeding. The American cliff swallow feeds entirely on insects caught in flight. ^ Cute couple A male cliff swallow joins the female for added protection as she incubates the 4—5 eggs inside her cliffside nest. Knocking down all old cliff swallow nests after the breeding season also controls house sparrows, by removing places for them to roost during the winter and preventing them from becoming established in the existing nests at a colony site before cliff swallows return in the spring. In this damp and dreary climate, the bird tends to forage alone. Efforts to reduce conflicts include re-scheduling highway construction to non-breeding times of the year, using plastic netting or barriers, broadcasting alarm calls to prevent settlement during construction, and installing Teflon sheeting to nest-attachment areas to block the birds' access. Previous attempts to attract swallows with playbacks of vocalizations, a project begun in 2012. , were unsuccessful. Large flocks forage together in flight throughout the day; birds have been timed at up to almost 30 mph. The breeding season for swallows lasts from March through September. Most do nothing once inside, but occasionally one will steal fresh mud or toss an egg out of the nest. Most measures have had only mixed success at discouraging nesting, and we do not recommend enacting any of these methods once birds are present at a colony site. They will bite researchers when we handle them or handle cliff swallow nests, but they will not seek out humans for blood meals. The famous swallows of Capistrano are Cliff Swallows, and, contrary to legend, they return to Capistrano in late February, considerably earlier than the fabled March 19. They often reuse nests left from the previous summer and need to add mud only to the nest's entrance, a narrow tunnel that usually points downward. The bird chases after flying ants, wasps, grasshoppers, dragonflies, mosquitoes and beetles, including the destructive cotton-boll weevils; the swallow's menu includes 84 insect families from 10 orders.The bird holds its tiny, gaping mouth as wide as it can to scoop up hundreds of insects as it darts along. Foraging in large groups of up to 2,000 birds, the cliff swallow searches for swarms of insects.The birds tend to focus on areas of relatively high altitudes; however; in cool and cloudy weather the cliff swallows feed just above the ground or water surface due to lack of visibility and decreased availability of swarming insects. A dedicated cliff swallow nesting structure was built at Thunder Valley Casino in Lincoln, California, which attracted birds in large numbers, . Although swallow bugs resemble bed bugs and are closely related to them, the swallow bug’s ecology is very different from that of bed bugs. American cliff swallows are abundant throughout their range and are currently not threatened.Their adaptability in nesting sites has led to the expansion of their range across the United States. Cliff swallows migrate during the day and catch flying insects en route. The cliff swallow migrates to its North American breeding grounds, arriving from March to May True to its name, the bird has historically nested on the sides of steep cliffs. Cliff swallows live in a colonial lifestyle during the breeding season, composed of a large number of pairs per nesting site. The plaster nests were made using a latex mold from a nest in Nebraska, and an artificial wall was constructed so that the nests would not have to be attached to the historic Mission buildings. More recently, Mission San Juan Capistrano unveiled an artificial wall, complete with plaster nests, in our latest attempt to entice cliff swallows back to the mission grounds. Though the cliff swallow still settles along the cliffs and canyons of western North America, it has adapted to alternative nesting sites across the U.S.: many bridges, dams or buildings offer protective overhangs and suitable vertical surfaces on which to attach a nest. They will not. # Cliff swallows choose mud with high clay and silt content; this makes the nest less likely to crumble when dry, important when walls are shared. American cliff swallows never have a problem sharing their food sources. The nesting structure was designed and constructed by James Kulbeth, Directorate of Public Works Environmental Division biologist at Fort Carson. Presence of colonies on highway bridges sometimes conflicts with road construction and bridge maintenance. 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