Darien Land Trust member Denis “Den” Frelinghuysen removes a Tree Swallow nest from a bird house at Mather Meadows as Darien Land Trust Executive Director Shirley Nichols looks on in this Nov. 23, 2013, photo.

If you haven’t already, this is a good time to clean the bird houses. Birds will still use the houses for winter shelter without the nests. Old nests hold a variety of parasites and could be harmful to the birds in the spring. Cleaning the boxes will also give you the opportunity check if any unwanted visitors have used the house, such as wasps.

In the above photo, Darien Land Trust member Denis Frelinghuysen removes a Tree Swallow nest from a box at the Mather Meadows property in the northern part of Darien. Land Trust Executive Director Shirley Nichols looks on.