Serious question, what's up with all the bird nests in public parks?

I was at a city park in Denver last weekend and counted 8 active nests just in the trees around one picnic area. Has anyone else noticed more birds building in busy spots lately?

3 comments

3 Comments

vera_robinson361mo ago

Were you counting robin nests specifically or the little hanging bag ones from orioles? I'm asking because I noticed the same thing at a park near me in Ohio and it turned out the park had removed a bunch of old dead trees last winter which forced all the birds to crowd into the few good spots left. Did you see any evidence of tree trimming or construction around your Denver park? Because that would explain why they're all piling into one area instead of spreading out like they normally would.

cora5181mo ago

Did you see that study about how city birds are adapting to nest in bridges instead of trees?

violaramirez1mo ago

Did the study control for whether those bridge nests were actually successful or if birds just tried them and then abandoned them early? Because I remember reading something about cliff swallows near a highway underpass where most of the nests got washed out during the first heavy rain because the concrete channeled water differently than a tree branch would. Also were they looking at the same species that normally nest in trees or were these bridge specialists like pigeons and starlings that already prefer flat manmade ledges?