13 July 2016
Hamilton County, TN
The 4th year of my Tree Swallow breeding project is winding down, with the
final 5 broods that should fledge in the next week. I will post the final
numbers from all the boxes once all the birds are done breeding (not just the
swallows, but the other species using the boxes as well), but I wanted to
report a milestone; after tallying my numbers for this week, I have banded over
1,000 swallows (1,013, to be exact)! The number of swallows I have banded has
increased each year of the project, and I have banded well over 300 so far this
year. I hope Harold Sharp and Don Broyles are looking down and smiling at what
they accomplished. They, along with the other members of the Riverwalk Bird
Club, put up 10 boxes at Chickamauga Dam in 2001 to attract bluebirds. Their
efforts were successful, so they continued putting up boxes around Chattanooga.
There are now 176 boxes that mostly get used by bluebirds and Tree Swallows,
with the occasional chickadee, titmouse, or wren. Good work gentlemen!
David Aborn
Chattanooga, TN
