Submitted by Wildsight Golden
There have been some accomplishments in the Upper Columbia Swallow Habitat Enhancement Project (UCSHEP) and we are looking ahead.
Populations of two species at risk, bank and barn swallows, have unfortunately significantly declined in the last few decades.
The UCSHEP, administered by Wildsight Golden, is working to help halt and reverse these population declines.
In 2023 the UCSHEP team was involved in the following conservation actions: coordinating 82 volunteers who helped monitor bank swallow colonies and barn swallow nests in the Upper Columbia Valley between Donald and Canal Flats; private landowner visits for swallow inventories and education about swallows; construction of artificial nesting structure (ANS) for barn swallows and a multi-species use structure for endangered bats and swallows.
Eight ANSs have been constructed since the program’s inception in 2021. Twenty-nine nest cups were installed on various pre-existing buildings, which were made by volunteers from the Lake Windermere Rod and Gun Club. A bank swallow colony in Invermere was prevented from being destroyed during a development and instead was resloped for increased nesting opportunities.
In partnership with Environment and Climate Change Canada, six Motus Wildlife Tracking Stations were installed and 50 bank swallows tagged at two colonies near Invermere to provide information on post-breeding habitat and migration routes. At swallow enhancement sites, interpretive signs were installed and included Indigenous information about the swallows. Perspectives were provided by the Secwépemc and Ktunaxa Nations.
The UCSHEP has some exciting things coming up. We will continue to have volunteers monitor bank swallow colonies and barn swallow nests. We’ll also continue to provide landowner outreach and education through farmer’s markets, bird walks, presentations, and give nest cups for barn swallows to those people who qualify.
We plan to work more with businesses to help them learn how to co-exist with at-risk barn swallows. There will be a bank swallow restoration initiative near Parson.
In Edgewater we plan to make modifications to a pre-existing barn to make it structurally sound and more suitable for barn swallows and bats, partnering with The Nature Trust of BC and the Wildlife Conservation Society. And we will be building an artificial nesting structure at Moberly Marsh, collaborating with Ducks Unlimited Canada and BC Parks.
We cannot do this work without the help of volunteers and are once again looking for people with binoculars to help us until September. Volunteers will monitor swallow nests, or colonies, or possibly the effectiveness of conservation actions already on the ground. This is a great way to learn more about our local swallows and get outside at the same time. We provide training and support.
To learn more please visit the Wildsight Golden website or contact us at [email protected].
Thank you to all of the volunteers that help make swallow conservation in the Columbia Valley a success.
This program is managed by local biologist Rachel Darvill and naturalist Verena Shaw.
We look forward to hearing from you!
