Barn swallows abandoned their nest with 5 eggs, help!

[ACMEeventing]

We watched this pair build their nest on our front porch, and about 5 days into brooding they just vanished. I feel terrible that the eggs are still there, and I’m wondering how long before I should take them down so the swallows reuse the nest next year.

This is our first experience with swallows, I’m so sad!

To pre-answer some questions: They seemed to be content with the human and cat traffic below them. The cats could sit on the railing and watch but could not get closer than 6 feet from the nest. We do have a hawk family in the woods behind our house (maybe their call scared the swallows away?). The swallows were in the rafters nearly around the clock for weeks, and two mornings ago they were gone.

Anyone with experience that can help me out?

[Sugarbrook]

No experience but the same thing happened to us. Birds built a nice nest in one of the big plants on our front porch. Hardly any traffic in and out the front door. Suddenly they disappeared and left behind 4 perfect little blue eggs. SAD!!

[PNWjumper]

Could be that the eggs weren’t viable and they realized it early on.

[walkinthewalk]

What PNWJumper said and it’s also possible one or both parents met an untimely demise.

I only only have one pair and they have been real party animals. Blasting in at night during feeding time for the horses and gone all day long.

not only do I not know how they managed to lay eggs but I’m astounded the eggs hatched and I see three little heads peaking over the top of the nest, lol

One or both of them were born here ---- my original pair didn’t come back this year ---- they were at least five years old so ----- who knows------

OP, it is probably best to leave nature take its course with the abandoned eggs. Even if you could hatch them, they would need to be fed every couple hours at least. It’s always hurtful to watch the dark side of Nature in action but, if the parents did abandon the nest, they did that for a reason:(

[ACMEeventing]

Thanks for the replies! I guess I’ll never know what became of them.

@walkinthewalk - I was only going to remove the eggs so they wouldn’t rot up there, I have already raised my 3 children and have no intention of feeding baby birds every couple of hours :lol:

Maybe another pair will enjoy that nest next year.

[csaper58]

@ACMEeventing

We watched this pair build their nest on our front porch, and about 5 days into brooding they just vanished. I feel terrible that the eggs are still there, and I’m wondering how long before I should take them down so the swallows reuse the nest next year.

This is our first experience with swallows, I’m so sad!

To pre-answer some questions: They seemed to be content with the human and cat traffic below them. The cats could sit on the railing and watch but could not get closer than 6 feet from the nest. We do have a hawk family in the woods behind our house (maybe their call scared the swallows away?). The swallows were in the rafters nearly around the clock for weeks, and two mornings ago they were gone.

Anyone with experience that can help me out?

Swallows lots of eat insects, and were I live the county is spraying constantly to kill mosquitoes in fear of the Zica virus.

We no longer have swallows, and the reduction in the populations of all insect eating birds is notable.

We also no longer have any Gecko and Anoles are growing scarce.

Is there a health thriving insect population to support the swallows?

[ACMEeventing]

There is quite a healthy insect population! We live on a 34 acre farm and I would watch them catch insects mid-air constantly. Very entertaining to watch.

Interestingly, we are having a chilly snap right now (by NC standards anyway, it was upper 50’s this morning and windy) and the last few days have been unseasonably cool.

Yesterday we saw the pair come back (if it’s the same pair) and they sort of snuck up on the nest, peeked in, hopped around it like they were mortified that eggs were there, and then took off. I went ahead and pulled the eggs out this morning before they could rot. Maybe they’ll come back and lay some more.

[gumtree]

We have a LOT of Swallows, very old barn. Haven’t counted this year but at least 10 nesting pairs. Don’t know much about the “habits” but the old nests aren’t always used again. Maybe because the builders didn’t make it back? We have low ceilings in our barn aisleway . Fascinating to watch them build the nests, one tiny drop of mud at a time, layer after layer.

The Swallows in our barn are never bothered by activity inside or out. With low ceilings, (8+’) they just swoop and fly up and down the aisleway right by our and the horse’s heads regardless of what’s going on, Tacking up, mucking, etc. The flying poop is a bit of a PITA, modern art on the stall doors, walls. But it washes off easy enough.

We have barn cats and when they are in the area the birds scream at them and swoop at them. Cat’s couldn’t care less. Though we had one clever kitty. When someone would park the farm cart in the aisleway he would climb up and sit on the roof of it. Wait for one to fly by, try and grab one out of the air. We stopped parking the cart in the barn during swallow season.

Last year we had a curious thing happen. Like every year a bunch came home to roost, nest. But for some reason come July or so a bunch of the nest were empty. About half. Not sure what was going on. But I do know that Crows are known to raid Swallow nests for the eggs and chicks. So maybe yours got driven out by Crows? Or some other flying predator? I’m going to try and keep an eye out this season.

[candyappy]

If you have cats it might be that they didn’t abandon the eggs, but that your cats got the birds… My barn cat feasted on both the adult barn swallows and the resulting chicks.