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Chimney Swift Count by Lake Park Birders

Count Chimney Swifts with Paul Hunter
at St. Robert's Church on Capitol and Maryland in Shorewood, Wisconsin

On one night over the weekend of 2nd Friday, Saturday and Sunday of August and September each year
we will observe the roost starting about 30 minutes before dusk and estimate the number of swifts that enter.

Swift Count 2009

Sun, Aug 9, 2009 . . 7:45 - 8:15 PM
About nine of us counted swifts in Shorewood, Wisconsin this night. We got about the same results as Carol Johnstone did on 8/7. We saw about 150-200 swifts dive into the school chimney at St Robert's Church on the corner of Capitol Dr and Maryland Ave in Shorewood, Milwaukee County, Wisconsin. A cold front with thunderstorms passed through at about 6 PM. It was partly sunny with light wind by counting time.

Sun, Sep 13, 2009 . . . 6:40 - 7:20 PM
Six of us gathered at the corner of Capitol Drive and Maryland Avenue and waited anxiously as we saw only a few swifts very high on this clear, calm, seasonably temperate evening. A Peregrine Falcon flashed past over St Roberts church. It wasn't till a couple minutes past sunset till a flock of 155 swifts started purposefully swirling around the chimney in the southwest corner of the apartment building on the southwest corner of Capitol Drive and Maryland Avenue.

Swift Count 2008
Sun, Aug 10, 2008 . . . 7:30 - 8:30 PM .
Sun, Sep 7, 2008 . . . 7 - 8 PM
corner of Capitol Drive and Maryland Avenue

Number of swifts counted: 185
Time (and time zone): 7:25 PM, central
Date: Sunday, September 7, 2008
Address: city, state/province: Corner of Maryland and Capitol in Shorewood, Wisconsin
Broad description of the site, e.g. school, warehouse, residence, Chimney Swift Tower, etc.: - School - Inactive incinerator on St Robert's school
Weather conditions may also be reported. - clear, calm, about 68 degrees Fahrenheit

There were about nine of us including a children's book author who is writing a non-fiction book about chimney swifts.

Swift Count 2007
Sun, Aug 12, 2007 . . . 7:30 - 8:30 PM
50 swifts dived into rooftop chimney on apartment building on southwest corner of Capitol Drive and Maryland Avenue
Sun . Sep . 9, 2007 . . . 7 - 8 PM
16 swifts were seen on this cool blustery evening
8 dived into the same rooftop chimney on apartment building on southwest corner of Capitol Drive and Maryland Avenue
8 went into the inactive incinerator chimney on the school at St Roberts Church on the northeast corner of Capitol Drive and Maryland Avenue

Between 7:05 and 7:25 PM on Sunday, September 10, 2006
6 observers saw 370 swifts dive into the chimney an apartment building one block east of St. Robert's Church
on the north side Capitol between Farwell and Prospect.
The weather was blustery with easterly winds 10-15 mph, low cloud cover and light rain.
The temperature was a chilly 60 degrees Fahrenheit.

Between 7:50 and 8:10 PM on Sunday , August 13, 2006
about 8 observers saw 50 swifts dive into the chimney of the
apartment building on the southwest corner of Capitol and Maryland.
The weather was mostly cloudy, with a light southerly wind and about 75 degrees Fahrenheit.

Between 7:15 and 7:38 PM on Friday, September 9, 2005
8 observers saw 1000 swifts dive into the school's chimney at St. Robert's Church.
The weather was clear, calm and about 75 degrees Fahrenheit.

Between 7:55 and 8:15 PM on Sunday , August 14, 2005
3 observers saw 45 swifts dive into the school's chimney at St. Robert's Church.
The weather was clear, calm and about 70-75 degrees Fahrenheit.

On July 27, 2005 five swifts dived into the chimney at St. Robert's.

On September 9, 2004
7 birders watched 210 swifts dive into a chimney
at sunset on the 1000 block of Cass Street.

5 birders carpooled from Lake Park to the parking lot in the 1000 block of N. Cass Street near Cathedral Square in downtown Milwaukee. 2 other birders met up with us there. Up till sunset very few swifts were visible in the cloudless, still sky... and then only very high, over 100 meters up. At sunset 2 swifts unexpectedly dived into a small chimney across the street from the chimney used during the September 5th scouting. We anxiously split into 3 groups to observe several adjacent chimneys as the swifts lowered there flight to 50 - 100 meters and increased in numbers as if from thin air. However, about 10 minutes after sunset it became obvious that the roosting chimney would be the same chimney used on September 5, as the flock started swirling around and feigning dives at it. Minutes later the swifts dived in earnest. Only careful observation with binoculars from different angles by multiple birders allowed us to confidently tell when the first swifts were fluttering into the chimney rather than swooping down behind the chimney. After about half the swifts had entered the roost, the last half poured down in an almost continuous stream. A pair of stragglers chittered away at treetop level for a few minutes before diving in..

Scouting on September 5, 2004 revealed over 100 swifts diving into a chimney just 50 meters northeast of the Plaza Hotel. The first swift dived in a minute before sunset. The last finished 20 minutes after sunset. Up until about 15 minutes before sunset, the swifts cruised higher 50 meters up and wandered up to 2 or 3 blocks away.

Scouting on September 6, 2004 revealed 30 swifts at St. Robert's Church School just northeast of the corner of E Capitol Drive and N Maryland Avenue.

A Swift Night Out: As summer draws to a close and the swifts have finished raising their young, these fascinating aerial acrobats begin to congregate in communal roosts prior to their migration in the fall. Some roosts may consist of an extended family group of a half a dozen birds or so, but the larger sites can host hundreds or even thousands of swifts! Keep your eyes to the skies at dusk in late July and watch for areas where swifts are feeding. Look for a tall shaft, chimney or similar structure to locate where Chimney Swifts go to roost.
On one night over the weekend of 2nd Friday, Saturday and Sunday of August and September each year
observe the roost starting about 30 minutes before dusk and estimate the number of swifts that enter.

National Swift Night Out: a count of swifts in fall
coordinated by the Driftwood Wildlife Association in Austin, Texas
2005 Results
2004 Results
2003 Results
History Since 2001
Paul D. and Georgean Z. Kyle
Driftwood Wildlife Association
1206 West 38th, Suite 1105, Austin, TX 78705
phone / fax (512) 266-3861
Visit web site: www.chimneyswifts.org

Where are they going?

Chimney Swifts usually nest one pair per chimney, but
in migration Chimney Swifts sleep together in chimneys.
These roosts number from dozens to thousands of birds.
Before settling down at dusk the birds swirl around a chimney, twittering excitedly for a half hour.
Within 10 minutes of the first bird diving in, all the birds have disappeared.

Before European settlers cut down most of the forest in the eastern United States,
Chimney Swifts used to mainly nest and roost in hollow trees. They then adapted to chimneys.
Now chimneys are disappearing as old buildings are torn down.

The Texas Dept. of Parks and Wildlife has ideas for
Providing and Maintaining Nesting Habitat for Chimney Swifts .

The Driftwood Wildlife Association in Austin, Texas
built a Chimney Swift tower.

Chimney Swifts winter in Northeast Peru

"For a long time, the destination of the chimney swifts' winter journey
south was a mystery. Based on reports of sightings, scientists believed
it to be somewhere in Central or South America, but definite proof did
not come until 1943. That year it is said, an explorer in the remote
Northeast regions of Peru encountered an Indian tribe wearing necklaces
made of aluminum rings. Examining the jewellry more closely, he found
the rings were leg bands used by scientists to track bird mirgrations.
These particular bands once belonged to chimney swifts tagged in North
America. Today, we know that chimney swifts winter in a region of Peru
near the Amazon drainage, between the Napo and Putumayo rivers."
http://www.town.wolfville.ns.ca/visitors/sites/robietufts/robietufts.html
Coffey, Ben B. Jr. 1944. Winter home of Chimney Swifts discovered in northeastern Peru.
The Migrant. 15(3): 37-38

Nat'l Geo Map of South America
http://tinyurl.com/3ug2h

"The upper Amazon-Napo lowlands cover a vast area of eastern Ecuador
(Napo and Pastaza states), northern Peru (Amazonas, Loreto and San
Martín departments), westernmost Amazonas state of Brazil and the
southern border area of Colombia. The area is centred on the lowland and
foothill forests of the upper Putumayo river, the middle and upper Napo,
the Marañón (including the Pastaza and Huallaga rivers), the Ucayali
(and possibly the Javarí), and the Amazonas drainages, generally west of
the confluence of the Putumayo and Amazonas, and primarily from the
lowlands up to 600 m. The area is characterized by high rainfall (which
is relatively constant year-round), complex topography and soils, and
vast meandering river systems that create habitat mosaics. This
ecosystem is extraordinarily diverse and comprises primary humid forest,
some of which is seasonally inundated (várzea) forest, with other areas
more characteristic of nutrient-poor white-sand forest."
http://www.birdlife.net/datazone/search/ebas_search.html?action=EbaHTMDetails.asp&sid=46&m=0
http://tinyurl.com/3zxdz

Types and Severity of Threats
The whole Ecuadorian Amazon has been subject to oil and gas exploration
and virtually all of the Napo riverine area in Ecuador is open for oil
leasing, according to Stattersfield (1998). The construction of roads by
oil companies has resulted in deforestation, displacement of the
indigenous peoples, and colonization of the interior by peasant farmers.
Major deforestation also results from cattle ranching and coca
production, and it has destroyed habitat of the richest herpetofauna in
the world . Ongoing human activities such as logging, ranching,
large-scale agriculture, mining, wildlife trade, and industrial
development threaten these forests and the species they harbor."
http://www.worldwildlife.org/wildworld/profiles/terrestrial/nt/nt0142_full.html
http://tinyurl.com/4ahun

Subject: [wisb] Chimney Swifts (2004 Home Team)
Date: Sun, 12 Sep 2004
From: Sean Carroll <cedarwaxwing@ix.netcom.com>
Lake/McHenry County, Illinois, near Wisconsin
To: Wisconsin Birding Network <wisbirdn@lawrence.edu>

A report on the CHIMNEY SWIFTS here at home in 2004:

MAY 2: Swifts arrive in my local survey area
MAY 8: Lone swift makes a couple passes over chimney at dusk
MAY 14-17: Roosting in chimney begins
MAY 28: At least 3 of 4 swifts flying around house seen to enter chimney
after sunset
JUNE 1: 2 swifts enter chimney one after the other at dusk
JUNE 19: I place an old Christmas tree (Twig Helper) on peak of roof about 10' from chimney
JUNE 26: 2 swifts enter chimney one after the other at 2015
JUNE 27-JULY 2: Nest construction begins at some point here
JUNE 28: Began to notice "white shapes" at or near bottom of (unoccupied) shaft; may have been either accumulation of droppings becoming noticeable or evidence of a change in activity (Spending more time near bottom of shaft, nest construction-related, working on the saliva-glue "foundation" of the nest? Spending time on the actual bottom, perhaps salvaging material from last year's fallen nest?)
JULY 2: Swift clinging to west wall far down shaft in the early evening
JULY 3-4: Swift clinging to west wall far down shaft is definitely "on
something" (and I don't mean medication or drugs)
JULY 5: First sighting of nest under construction on west wall, 107" or
8'11" from top of shaft (measured in September), estimated to protrude 2" from wall at this point
JULY 6: Swift sitting in nest that appears to already be a good deal larger than it was yesterday. Egg-laying begins (calculated in retrospect).
JULY 8: First sighting of eggs, 2 of them. Nest estimated to extend 3.5-4" from wall now.
JULY 10: 3 eggs in nest, early PM check.
JULY 11: Still 3 eggs, nest looks a bit ragged on "north side" edge
JULY 12: 4 eggs in nest, 2 on end, 2 laying down.
JULY 14: Bird on nest inferred from inability to see eggs on first check; later, saw the 4 eggs for the last time
JULY 15-29: Checked all but one day, incubating bird on nest found
consistently
JULY 30-31: Eggs hatch
JULY 31: Saw nestlings, pale orange shapes, gray shapes (heads?) that moved
AUGUST1-12: Saw nestlings daily, often hard to make out individually, could not confirm exact count
AUGUST 6: Heard chitter (sounds like sizzling in a frying pan) of the
nestlings for the first time, when adult entered to feed them
AUGUST 10: Noticed that bottom of shaft, formerly of a vaguely pale color, seemed to have a "shadow" on it (later determined it was not an actual shadow from the nest, and later realized that the entire bottom had grown dark over time; now in retrospect it occurs to me that the young birds may have just started to poop over the rim of the nest and that their [evidently copious] droppings before a certain age may be very dark rather than white - this would account for the "black gunk" layer atop the straw)
AUGUST 13-16: Nestlings become easier to discern individually, and I hear some chirps when I peer into down the shaft
AUGUST 17-18: At least some nestlings begin to venture from the nest and
explore shaft
AUGUST 19: Nest empty for the first time, nestlings on the walls
AUGUST 20: 1-2 nestlings on wall only 4 feet below top of shaft
AUGUST 21-22: At least 2 nestlings observed in/under the "mystery duct
stub" only a few feet down the south wall; nestling clinging to this object observed flapping its wings rapidly, vigorously (exercise?)
AUGUST 23: Immediately noticed all the new droppings on top of mystery duct stub, then found all 4 nestlings clinging to south wall no more than 2 feet
below top of shaft
AUGUST 24-29: 4 nestlings high in shaft (usually "layered" close to each other on the same wall but sometimes 2 each on north and south walls - never yet observed on east wall), spoke to them and they regarded me with
curiousity but no evident fear (of course they have seen me many, many times now); with nestlings so high in shaft their chittering can now be heard on occasion from the yard
AUGUST 28: In the evening an unusually robust swift is observed flying in
rather small circles above the house, then making 2 attempts to enter
chimney before succeeding - I think this was a young swift on a short
practice flight, and that such flights might have already been going on for several days
AUGUST 30: Chimney found empty (1030 check) for the first time; young have fledged for real
AUGUST 31: Mid-morning check finds 1 swift in the chimney, the last time a bird will be observed roosting during daylight hours
SEPTEMBER 1-6: Swifts still roosting in chimney
SEPTEMBER 9: Monitored chimney from before sunset until near darkness, no swifts in chimney, no birds come to roost
SEPTEMBER 11: Chimney Swifts still present in the area