swallow nests

[tyler durden]

not sure which bird makes them (swallows, swifts or housemartins), but how do they make those nests that are stuck underneath/on the side of rafters in barns or houses? and why don't they fall down?

[ernestoba]

Housemartins build nest as you describe.
They use mud and their own saliva to stick the nest.

[heathfield]

The nests don't fall because the birds are expert at choosing the right kind of mud for their construction.

Some interesting reading about them here

[horsestache1]

Swallows also make these nests, they incorporate tiny bits of hay and straw and make a kind of wattle and daube (sp).

I've watched a Swallow start from nothing and build a whole nest in less than a day. Amazing. Shame we cant get builders like this!!!

[wildwood]

How come there are no stars for ernestoba? He/She is the only one who correctly included saliva in the bird's nesting material !