1987: Welcome Barn Swallows

This story was selected by the Country Roads magazine editorial team as the representative piece for 1987 in the archival project "40 Stories From 40 Years"—celebrating the magazine's 40th anniversary on stands. Click here to read more stories from the project.

The barn swallow (Hirundo rustica) first appeared in our area as a nesting species, at least to my knowledge in 1978. Prior to this time, it was known here only as a spring and a fall migrant, though it was often seen in abundant numbers at these times. In the 1974 edition of Louisiana Birds, expert ornithologist and author Dr. George H. Lowery Jr., noted that barn swallows had only recently been observed breeding in the upper northwest parishes of Louisiana. 

In the summer of 1978, I first noticed barn swallows breeding in the large highway culverts in the Port Hudson area and at another site in Star Hill just south of St. Francisville. Not long afterwards, I began receiving telephone calls from people curious about the little blue swallows building mud nests on their porches. Since that time, the birds have increased to the point of being a fairly common nesting species in suitable areas, even right in the middle of some of the towns in the Country Roads area. 

[Read Alexandra Kennon's memoriam for Murrell Butler, who passed away in fall of 2021.] 

The fact that we are seeing a more northern nesting species nesting in this area for the first time is called a breeding range extension and is not uncommon. In the case of the barn swallow, the interstate highway system has greatly enhanced this southward extension, as it has provided a multitude of bridges and large culverts for the birds to nest under. 

For those not familiar with the barn swallow, it is slightly smaller than its familiar purple cousin. The name “barn” derives from the bird’s habit of nesting in barns, at least in earlier times. The barn swallow’s upper parts are of more bluish color than of the purple martin, while its underparts are a buff-orange, and it has a deeply forked tail. 

Like the martin, this species is highly beneficial, eating large quantities of flying insects including biting ones like mosquitoes and gnats. The small mess these birds might make on a porch is a small price to pay for their beneficial feeding habits.

Their nests are constructed of small pellets of mud gathered from nearby ponds or mudpuddles and cemented together on a vertical surface, usually under highway bridges or the eves of a house or barn. Straw is added to give the nest strength, and the interior is lined with feathers. The birds return to the same site year after year, building a new nest each time. 

[Read James Fox-Smith's piece on Murrell Butler's life and work from February 2020 here.]

The barn swallow is one of the species of birds which normally winters in South America. This species seems to show a decided preference for nesting under highway bridges, especially those spanning creeks. In such places they find ample nesting spaces, an adequate supply of accessible mud, and good feeding areas. It is in such sites that the largest nesting colonies are found. Some of the larger bridges in different parts of the country have been known to harbor over a hundred nests under their girders. 

Anyone finding a nest larger in size than that of a dirtdauber under the eves of their house or on their porch should think twice before knocking it down. It might be the nest of a beneficial barn swallow. The nests may be removed after nesting is completed, however, as the birds will build a new one the following year.