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Housemartins at Christmas

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  • 24-12-2007 8:18pm
    #1
    PDN
    Closed Accounts Posts: 13,686 ✭✭✭✭


    Any birdwatchers on here know much about housemartins? I live in County Louth and housemartins live in their nest in the eaves over my front door. I assumed they were long gone to Africa for winter - but tonight (Christmas Eve) I noticed one of them poking his head out of the nest.

    Is this normal? Or a sign of global warning? Or maybe this one got left behind?


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    #2
    myjugsarehuge
    Closed Accounts Posts: 234 ✭✭myjugsarehuge


    I would doubt one got left behind, they are long gone. Maybe it was a sparrow or wren? Other birds will roost in available nests on cold winter nights.


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    #3
    PDN
    Closed Accounts Posts: 13,686 ✭✭✭✭PDN


    It definitely looked like a housemartin. My father-in-law and I saw it. We could only see the head, but it was blue/black on top with a white face.

    BTW, I was hoping to remove the nest, but someone has told me this is illegal. Is that true? I'm just moving into the house but they spent all Summer ****ting on my doorstep. Any ideas?


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    #4
    bohemian86
    Registered Users Posts: 3 ✭bohemian86


    PDN wrote: »
    It definitely looked like a housemartin. My father-in-law and I saw it. We could only see the head, but it was blue/black on top with a white face.

    BTW, I was hoping to remove the nest, but someone has told me this is illegal. Is that true? I'm just moving into the house but they spent all Summer ****ting on my doorstep. Any ideas?

    AFAIK not all swallows migrate. Some stay around all year.


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    #5
    Roen
    Closed Accounts Posts: 4,620 ✭✭✭Roen


    I think an increasing amount of birds are over wintering here. I don't see it being beyond the realms of possibility that some housemartins may stay behind.

    Not sure about removing the nest though.


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    #6
    Mothman
    Closed Accounts Posts: 6,498 ✭✭✭Mothman


    PDN wrote: »
    We could only see the head, but it was blue/black on top with a white face.
    That's a good description of a Great Tit. While I'm loathe to say not impossible to be House Martin, it is what I'm thinking. Over wintering of swallows and martins are more likely on southern coast margins rather than north as far as Louth.

    I have Swallow, not House Martin nests, but Great Tits roost in them at night
    PDN wrote: »
    BTW, I was hoping to remove the nest, but someone has told me this is illegal. Is that true? I'm just moving into the house but they spent all Summer ****ting on my doorstep. Any ideas?
    Can you put a board up to catch the droppings? I did this with the afforementioned swallow nests and it worked a treat. Headroom may be an issue because putting a board up to close to nest makes the nest more open accessible to predators, but thats unlikely at the house.


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