Darou Farm Site Demolition is on hold: Barn swallows!

Inside OttawaValley ‏@InOttValley  Mar 10

Barn swallows delay, create headaches for Darou Farm site demolition http://bit.ly/1YCdcbx 

At least it is a different bird story. The cat-haters are up in arms about cats as predators. The claims are simply wrong. (Read more here!) The Darou-McPherson farm was bought by the Town of Perth. Then, they sold the buildings to someone who wants to disassemble and reassemble it in Lombardy. It's a win-win solution. Except there is a glitch. It has taken up much council time! [Perth ponders fate of Darou-McPherson property]

I had noticed that deconstruction had stopped. Who knew why? Local reporter: Desmond Devoyknows! He was at the council meeting. There have been issues.

Barn swallow nest - courtesy Nancy Tapley

The barn has been demolished and removed. [(Yes, I took photos!) Darou barn being dismantled] The shed, in the rear of the old homestead was partly undone. However, there are between 4 and 6 swallows in the old shed at the back of the house.

Barn swallows delay, create headaches for Darou Farm site demolition

The nests were discovered as part of the environmental assessments for the nearby landfill. The buildings have been sold to Dr. Warren Hollis, who wishes to relocate them to Lombardy, “subject to an acceptable plan for adaptive use of the salvageable building components.”

The barn
-before it was disassembled and taken away.

Right down to the foundations.

This is a tree swallow.
I haven't seen a barn swallow!

Barn Swallows are endangered

The Ministry rules say that an alternate nesting habitat must be created, and left there for two years.  They nest between May and August.  You have to do a report: 'Barn Swallow Mitigation and Restoration Record."  Barn swallow build nests with mud, they want unpainted wood. They nest under eaves, sheds, barns, and bridges.  There is another shed in Ottawa, we noticed it on one or two of our 49 trips to see a physician. They are lovely song birds, feisty bug-eaters!

It slowed down the work on the Jockvale bridge:

Swallows' nest holds up Jockvale bridge work

Then there are the structures by the Ottawa River:

Tiny condos by the Rideau River are for the ...

And this horrible story:

Mystery surrounds disappearance of Barrhaven bridge barn ...

The swallows had built two nests under the old bridge where Jockvale Road crosses the Jock River. The bridge was set for demolition to make room for a bigger new bridge, but the ministry stopped the work because barn swallows are endangered.The next day, birders and reporters went to the site and found the birds had disappeared. Rumours are, they were shot. 

• One email concerning the shooting has been withheld by the ministry, which says it could identify the tipster.

Barn Swallows

I have only seen them at Bondi Village, but I didn't snatch a photo! Nancy, of course, has a barn, and she has barn swallows who nest both in the barn and in her boathouses! They are pretty little things. 

My blog buddy, Margy in B.C., who lives on a houseboat, as is famous herself, shared some photos, as well! She is very close to nature.
 

Barn Swallow 2013 by Gordon Wolford 
Photographed near Rosedale, Ontario.

Gordon Wolford happily permitted me to use his photo.

Artificial barn Swallow Nests

This is an option. We visited this artificial habitat nesting site, created to facilitate nesting while repairing the bridge on #511. 

Problem is, the town wants to develop the site, and can't do it with the birds on it!
"Another few wrinkles in the plan are that the field where the new bird nests would be located are earmarked for industrial development under the town’s official plan, and that the original intention had been to demolish/remove all of the structures on the site."
 Isn't it beautiful? 



As I was photographing it,  some sledders zipped by!