[bristol-birds] Unusual Cliff Swallow nesting location
- From: Wallace Coffey <jwcoffey@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: 1-A Bristol-Birds <bristol-birds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 13 Jun 2002 19:37:46 -0300
Bristol-Birders:
Here in Northeast Tennessee, we have a substantial Cliff Swallow
nesting population. In the Upper Holston River we have several
very large colonies nesting on bridge structures along the South Fork
Holston River and Watauga River in Sullivan and Washington
Counties. These colonies are over rivers and TVA reservoirs.
Today, during the Bristol Bird Club "13th of the Month" field trip,
we discovered a colony under a small stream culvert where Riverbend
Road crosses Beidleman Creek in Sullivan County.
To my knowledge, this is the first such nesting in a small, low,
culvert over a narrow stream in Northeast Tennessee.
Here the stream is about 20 feet wide. The colony had maybe
two dozen nests in two channels and the culvert is about 200
yards from the river. Barn Swallows and Eastern Phoebes usually
build nests in such sites throughout the region. The Cliff Swallow
nests were about 6 to 8 feet above the stream and built on the
sides of the channel.
In Southwest Virginia Roger Clapp of the U.S. National Museum
had seven nest June 20, 1989 under the bridge over Fifteenmile
Creek at the junction of Va. Rts 676 & 672 3 miles north of
Avens Bridge which is on South Holston Lake in Washington Co., VA.
While this location was under a bridge and not a culvert, it was
still a good ways from South Holston Lake and the river channel.
Also during Thursday's (13th) field trip we had three Blue Grosbeaks,
Yellow-billed
Cuckoo, Kentucky Warbler and Great Blue Heron to name some
of the more fun birds.
Wallace Coffey
Bristol
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