“Recently I posted my observations on the failed nesting of a pair of Pacific Swallows (Hirundo tahitica) LINK.
“Almost immediately after the failed nesting, I noticed another one was being constructed a few feet away on the electrical trunking, which houses electrical cables, just below the ceiling of the ground floor car park deck in one of the blocks in my condo (above).
“I was extremely fortunate in the sense that I was there, on 1st May 2011 at about 8.45 am, to witness its construction almost right from the start. The birds were seen applying a mixture of mud, parts of grass and perhaps their own saliva on the vertical surface of the trunking. It was a bit like applying icing on cakes, for those who have such experience.
“By 9.25 am, there was much progress as seen from the attached image (top). Some of the building materials which inevitably fell on the floor below, is shown in the close up (left).
“A video of the beginning of the nest building can be viewed below.
“By the 5th day, the mud wall was substantially completed, as seen in the video below.
“On the 7th day, the swallows were seen bringing in plant materials to weave the nest cup (top right).
“A short video showing the birds weaving the lining of the nest cup can be viewed below.”
Sun Chong Hong
Singapore
6th June 2011
