Every year, the famous swallows return to Mission San Juan Capistrano in southern California. The swallows have come back to the historic mission annually since the early 1900s, flying thousands of miles from their winter home in Argentina to nest under the eaves of the old stone church and raise their young. The swallows’ annual return to the mission has become a beloved tradition and sign of spring for the town of San Juan Capistrano and visitors from all over. However, in recent years the number of swallows returning to the mission has declined sharply, leaving people wondering what happened to the famous swallows of San Juan Capistrano.
When do the swallows traditionally return to San Juan Capistrano?
The swallows typically arrive at the mission around March 19, St. Joseph’s Day. According to tradition, they leave around October 23, the former Feast Day of St. John of Capistrano. The swallows arrive at the mission from their wintering grounds in southern Brazil and Argentina, having made the 6,000 mile long journey north to California. Their precise arrival date can vary by a few days from March 15 to March 25 depending on weather conditions during their travels. For decades, the return of the swallows to San Juan Capistrano was as reliable as clockwork, with people gathering at the historic mission each year to welcome them back. It became a major local celebration and tourist attraction for the town.
When did the swallow population at the mission start to decline?
Up until the early 2000s, thousands of swallows would return to nest at the mission every year. However, over the past couple of decades, the number of returning swallows began to dwindle rapidly. By 2014, only 4 individuals returned – a dramatic decrease from the 1,500 or more swallows that previously came back to the site every year. In 2015, for the first time in over a century, no swallows appeared at all. While a few swallow pairs returned in 2016-2018, their numbers were vastly diminished from historic levels. By 2020, the swallows failed to return again, marking the second year in the past six that no swallows came back to San Juan Capistrano at all.
| Year | Estimated Number of Swallows Returning |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 1500 |
| 2005 | 1000 |
| 2010 | 500 |
| 2014 | 4 |
| 2015 | 0 |
| 2016 | 12 |
| 2017 | 5 |
| 2018 | 3 |
| 2019 | 0 |
| 2020 | 0 |
Why did the swallow population at San Juan Capistrano decline so rapidly?
Scientists and bird experts have proposed several theories to explain the precipitous decline in returning swallows to Mission San Juan Capistrano over the past 20 years:
Urbanization and loss of natural habitat
The areas surrounding San Juan Capistrano have become increasingly urbanized, leading to loss of open space, fields, marshes and other natural swallow habitats. Less viable nesting areas make the site less attractive to migrating swallows.
Climate change
Rising temperatures and changes in climate may be altering the swallows’ natural migratory patterns and causing shifts in their breeding and nesting behaviors. They may now favor other sites along their migration route rather than San Juan Capistrano.
Reduction in insects
Swallows feed exclusively on insects while nesting. Pesticide use in agriculture has reduced local flying insect populations that the birds rely on for food. Lack of sufficient insects makes sustaining the large colony more difficult.
Predation and competition
Non-native species introduced to Southern California like house sparrows may compete with swallows for nesting sites and prey on swallow eggs and hatchlings, limiting reproductive success.
Aging mission buildings
The crumbling plaster walls of the mission buildings that contain swallowed nests have been repaired and replaced over time. Newer construction likely offers fewer suitable surfaces and crevices for bird nests.
Will the swallows continue to return to San Juan Capistrano in diminished numbers?
It remains unclear if the declining swallow appearances since the 2000s represent a permanent change, or if was part of a temporary shift that may reverse in coming years. Some experts are hopeful that the iconic birds may rebound at San Juan Capistrano again, pointing to the sporadic handfuls of returning swallows in recent springs. However, if regional trends such as climate change, urbanization and loss of open habitat continue, the swallows may struggle to ever reach their former numbers at the historic mission site.
Possibly compounding the problem is the advanced age of the few remaining swallows that still come back – they may simply be nearing the end of their natural lifespan. For the swallows to recover at the site, younger birds would need to appear, become imprinted on the location, and return consistently over many years. At the moment this does not appear to be happening. While Mission San Juan Capistrano will likely continue to evoke nostalgic memories of its past glory days as a swallow haven, the future for these iconic migratory birds at the historic site sadly remains uncertain. Their diminished numbers seem to mirror the town’s own gradual transition over time from rural enclave to bustling suburb.
Efforts to attract swallows back to Mission San Juan Capistrano
In attempt to entice the swallows back, beginning in 2016 the mission has placed plaster nests along the walls and eaves of the church bell tower in hope they would prove inviting. Colony sounds are played over loudspeakers in early mornings when the birds arrive to create a sense of an active colony. Mission staff and volunteers also collect local flying insects in sweep nets and release them to provide ample food source for scouting swallows.
An additional effort starting in 2020 was the release of young cliff swallows at the mission site. Around 50 juvenile swallows who were orphaned or fell from their nests at other Southern California sites were rescued, cared for, and then set free at Mission San Juan Capistrano in spring 2020. The hope was that by imprinting on the mission from a young age, the birds might return to nest there for years to come. However, it remains to be seen if these efforts will succeed in re-establishing a thriving swallow colony at the historic mission. For now, the fate of the swallows of San Juan Capistrano remains uncertain and their diminished numbers continue to be a source of sadness and nostalgia for many long-time visitors.
Significance of the swallows’ absence to the town and mission
For the town of San Juan Capistrano, the disappearance of the swallows that gave the city its identity and brought in scores of tourists is a significant loss both economically and culturally. “It’s a tradition that’s gone on for centuries,” said Jan Siegel, a research associate with the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. “I think we Lost a piece of California history when the swallows stopped coming back.”
The absence of the swallows could mean a drop in tourism revenue for the city if fewer people visit each spring hoping to see them. “Merchants from Los Angeles used to take the train down to San Juan Capistrano for the day to watch the swallows during their month-long stay,” explains C.S. Earnest, a lifetime resident and historian of the city. “The swallows put Capistrano on the map, and it’s hard to imagine the city without them.”
Beyond economic impacts, many longtime residents feel the swallows’ disappearance signals the loss of a simpler, more rural way of life in the face of rapid development. The birds connected them to the city’s origins and agrarian roots in a way few other things did. For Mission San Juan itself, founded in 1776, the swallows were a beautiful living tradition that evoked its long, multi-generational history. Seeing the swallows nest at the ruins of the Great Stone Church conveyed a poignant sense of nature, permanence and renewal amidst change.
While a few swallows may still sporadically appear, for many observers the swallows’ de facto disappearance from their ancestral home at the mission after more than a century feels like the lamentable end of an era for San Juan Capistrano. The cultural legacy of being home to these unique migratory birds is a source of identity and continuity for the mission and town that present day residents fear losing. Hopefully in the future the beloved swallows may once again return en masse to the place they generation after generation have called home.
Conclusion
For close to a century, the reliable annual return of the swallows to Mission San Juan Capistrano became an iconic part of the city’s identity and a beloved sign of spring. However, over the past two decades the swallow population at the mission has precipitously declined, going from thousands of birds to just a handful today. Scientists have proposed theories including climate change, habitat loss, and competition from invasive species to explain the swallows’ disappearance. Despite efforts to try to attract them back by providing more nesting areas and food, the future of the swallows at the mission remains uncertain. The absence of the swallows is a cultural and economic loss for the town, severing a tie to its history. While a few swallows may still sporadically return, for many observers the great swallow migrations of the past now exist only in memory and legend, representing the lamentable loss of a cherished tradition once central to San Juan Capistrano’s identity.
