Cliff Swallow Nests
These Cliff Swallow nests are empty after a successful summer breeding season. They are often colony nesting birds, and these are actually on the underside of the Washington Street bridge right here in Jamestown, New York. This is a good example of a species that utilizes the urban environment we have created. Peregrine Falcons are another bird that would have been found on open cliffs that now nests on the ledges of our skyscrapers. While they would be hunting pigeons, starlings and sparrows, the Cliff Swallows can be found feeding on insects in the Chadakoin River habitat below the bridge...
Read MoreBanded Peregrine Falcon Devouring Pigeon
One of the most outrageously spectacular and breath-taking winter bird sightings you can have is, in my opinion, the Peregrine Falcon. As the fastest animal on the Earth the Peregrine is already in a class of its own, and if you have never seen one stooping on shorebirds, waterfowl or other coastal and open-country birds you are missing out on one of the most unbelievable happenings on the planet. The raw power and sheer speed these birds display is literally unmatched. After recovering from decimation via DDT the Peregrine Falcon has begun to reconquer our landscape, moving into cities and...
Read MoreWired world of swallows
Sometimes I think the swallows would hate a wireless world most of all. Tree, Barn, Northern Rough-winged, Bank, Cliff and a Purple Martin or two can still all be seen trying to head south. Aerial insectivores have to go where the food is flying or they’ll be in deep trouble. We need to rely more on them to clean our skies rather than chemicals which harm us all.
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