# Barn swallows: Last years clutch?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barn-swallows-last-years-clutch/657807>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [May 8, 2013, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barn-swallows-last-years-clutch/657807 "2013-05-08T15:51:43Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\
**Post date:** [May 8, 2013, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barn-swallows-last-years-clutch/657807/1 "2013-05-08T15:51:43Z")

</div>

Each year around this time we have barn swallows that nest in our barn. We do all we can to make their stay pleasant and successful, rearranging stall occupants for instance so they have more privacy.

Usually the birds are “flighty” until they get used to our comings and goings, eventually relaxing and accepting our occasional presence. But this year they are laid back and relaxed from the start.

Is this relaxed pair possibly the same pair that bred here last year? Their offspring? Birds that acclimated to humans wherever they overwintered?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Idle\_Thoughts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@Idle\_Thoughts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idle_Thoughts)\
**Post date:** [May 8, 2013, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barn-swallows-last-years-clutch/657807/2 "2013-05-08T15:53:09Z")

</div>

Moving this from ATMB to MPSIMS.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\
**Post date:** [May 8, 2013, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barn-swallows-last-years-clutch/657807/3 "2013-05-08T15:54:29Z")

</div>

Sorry, thought I was in GQ…  
ETA: 99% certain I was in GQ?!?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\
**Post date:** [May 8, 2013, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barn-swallows-last-years-clutch/657807/4 "2013-05-08T16:22:33Z")

</div>

> [@Idle\_Thoughts](#):
>
> Moving this from ATMB to MPSIMS.

Why not **The Barn House** for this one?

😉

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Idle\_Thoughts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@Idle\_Thoughts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idle_Thoughts)\
**Post date:** [May 8, 2013, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barn-swallows-last-years-clutch/657807/5 "2013-05-08T16:27:40Z")

</div>

> [@kayaker](#):
>
> Sorry, thought I was in GQ…  
> ETA: 99% certain I was in GQ?!?

Nope, it was definitely in ATMB,..however I’ll move it to GQ for you.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\
**Post date:** [May 8, 2013, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/barn-swallows-last-years-clutch/657807/6 "2013-05-08T17:08:17Z")

</div>

Absolutely. I mean songbirds’ lifespans aren’t usually that long (as compared to say raptors), but they can live for several years, so the same pair returning to the same spot to breed again is definitely well within the realm of possibility…