The bird expert offered an unusual idea to mission operators about how to get the swallows back. It centered on the sociable nature of the animals.
CHARLES BROWN: “The social species, they often look to see if others have settled there and have others been successful there. So we have to fool them into thinking that birds have been there recently.”
Charles Brown made recordings of swallows in Oklahoma. The mission hid sound systems in bushes. Soon, swallow song filled the air.
The swallow recordings played for two months this spring. The birds did not return to nest at the mission. But, there were signs that they might in the future.
Walter Piper is with Chapman University in nearby Orange, California. In early May, he found about one hundred swallows nesting on buildings just a half-kilometer from the mission.
WALTER PIPER: “This is the first indication that cliff swallows were nesting nearby the mission. Bit by bit, they build these huge nests. So that’s what we’re seeing. It’s cute to see them poke their heads out of there.”
Mister Piper says any of these birds could be nesters at the mission in the future. He says they could make the move as early as next spring. And the San Juan Capistrano mission plans to again play Charles Brown’s swallow welcome song.
(MUSIC)
Break-Up Songs
JUNE SIMMS: When love ends somebody usually feels really bad. Sadness, anger, distrust, and disbelief are some of the feelings that often go along with a break-up. It is emotionally powerful stuff.
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2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25
2013-11-25