Video courtesy VDOT
Tweet Tweet! Our cliff swallow birds are back on the Chatham Bridge.
Shortly before it closed to traffic in 2020, VDOT relocated 120 cliff swallow nestlings, which are birds too young to leave their nest, to The Wildlife Center of Virginia, where they were cared for until they could be returned to the wild.
The relocation was carefully planned in coordination with the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Cliff swallows are known to come back to their nesting areas, especially adults. It was no surprise our frequent flyers returned once construction was complete.
VDOT’s environmental specialist Mark Haus recently stopped by the bridge to see how the cliff swallows were acclimating. He identified 55 nests under the bridge and usually there are three to four chicks per nest.
It is wonderful to see the previous residents have returned and are just as active as before!
Chatham Bridge connects downtown Fredericksburg to Stafford County over the Rappahannock River.
