Fallen House Martin Nest (1 Viewer)

[DLSkelton]

Hi,

Firstly, I apologise if this is not the correct thread for a question such as this.

I have a pair of house martins nesting in my front porch. They have successfully raised 1 or 2 broods, but now - while raising another brood - their nest has fallen down.

The fledglings are fully feathered and can flutter along the ground, but cannot fly. The adults can still be seen in the area, but I have not witnessed them actually feeding the birds.

The area the birds are in is safe from traffic, but they are obviously vulnerable to the usual predators, such as household cats.

What should I do if anything?

Any advice would be very much appreciated.

Best wishes, David

 

[nickderry]

If there's any way of creating a makeshift nest from a cardboard box that can be fixed where the original nest was, that would work, just something that allows the parents to get in to feed the young ones.

 

[Clive A]

If there's any way of creating a makeshift nest from a cardboard box that can be fixed where the original nest was, that would work, just something that allows the parents to get in to feed the young ones.

Agree, just try and find some way of supporting the nest in the original position.

 

[AndyByron]

Only just spotted this.

This happened to us way back when I was at school. My dad put the pieces of the nest back together in a sort of chicken wire "hammock" and screwed that into its original position under the eaves. The adults started feeding the chicks again as soon as they were back in the nest.

A house martin nest box might be easier if you can find one - although they probably aren't on display in the shops at this time of year - but you could try phoning round a few garden centres, etc, that sell bird feeders and nest boxes.

Failing that, any sort of container that can be fixed to a wall - maybe a semicircular hanging basket or even a conventional wooden nest box could be modified?

 

[Floyd Barnes]

That's ingenious Andy (or dad) worth remembering that one.