Wednesday, May 7, 2008

Bird Nest

Internet - we have a problem.

The birds nest I'm talking about here are not the edible kind although the 2 types of birds are fairly similar. Birds nests, the ones that we love, are made from the saliva of swifts. Birds nests, the ones that we don't love, are made from mud by swallows (hirondelle in French).

I don't know how to stop the swallows from building their nest on our terrace.

You see, before we moved in & even last year, they have been happily building their nests & nursing their young. Last year right after we moved, they had already built a nest (I didn't know better then). To be honest, it was great cos we had front row seats to watch the eggs hatched, babies grow & chirp for food & eventually fly out of the nests.

What you don't know is that they make a mess. I wouldn't have minded if they build their nest on the edge of the terrace but no, they build it right in the middle. It's a mess when they drop pieces of mud & twigs used for building the nest everywhere. But mostly it's the bird poop that bothers me. I've witnessed first hand the baby swallows turn around & dump huge bird poop (you see they keep their nest clean & so they always poop outside the nest) right on the floor of our terrace. Apart from the fact that it stains the tiles, it is really a hygiene issue. Last year, we had to put a ugly plastic covering right under the nest to collect the droppings. I did a quick google search & found out that even the nest is full of termites, parasites & possible carrier of diseases. Yikes.

So this year, I put my foot down & said no more nests. We asked around & we were told to tie CDs to keep them away. Despite how unslightly the dangling CDs look on the terrace, we tied 2 to the beams. Well it worked all of 5 mins & then the swallows are back again. Every other day, I have to use a broom to break up the nest just as they are being built. Cos as much as I may sound like a bird monster right now, I'm not going to break up the nest once the eggs are inside. But these birds are persistant. Right after I turn around, they start again, they just don't give up nor take the hint that they should go somewhere else.

Do you have any suggestions ?

Here are some images of the nest last year. I know the babies look cute & believe me, they are. But I really cannot stand the mess one more year.




6 comments:

Moo said...

roast them over a spit - summer's here anyway..hehe..or is it possible to tie some sort of netting to prevent access to the beams?

petite fleur said...

Haha you're more of a bird monster than me...they should be so afraid of you. so when are you coming to visit ?

I read about the netting somewhere. The problem is that our terrace is quite big so it would have to be a huge net & would look totally ridiculous.

We'll catch up in Paris ?

Moo said...

bwahaha..i'm all words only la haa..would love to come visit but interning at the moment. when are you coming up to paris?

Kelly Crost said...

Yes, there is a company called Bird-X, Inc that specializes in humane bird control. They have tons of different products that are non-toxic, non-lethal to birds or humans that will definitely help your problem. For more information you can visit www.bird-x.com or call 312-226-2473.

petite fleur said...

Hi Kelly

Thanks for the info. I'll definitely go check out their website.

Anonymous said...

http://www.absolutebirdcontrol.com is where you can buy online bird control products that work.